Welsh dentistry 'no example' to England

The idea that Welsh dentistry is an example to England is "laughable", a representative of the sector has said.

Labour politicians have said Wales has created 400,000 appointments over the past two years.

But the British Dental Association (BDA) said that did not take into account the needs of individual patients, while one said he had been suffering dental pain for years.

Health Secretary Jeremy Miles said ministers were working with the BDA to reform dentistry contracts to "focus more on patient needs".

Matty Parry from Old Colwyn, Conwy county, said he had been pushed from one dentist to another while having dental pain for five years.

He is still trying to register for treatment but has been told by one dentist that could mean another two-and-a-half years of waiting.

"It's a shambles," he said.

"It’s horrendous how people can't get a dentist.

"They probably need to do more courses, they need to promote it more, to train people up."

He said paying for treatment was "unreal".

"I know people that have spent thousands of pounds on treatment, when really should it be that much?"

Last month, Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens told the Labour Party Conference the "UK government will take inspiration from Wales on dentistry, where reforms have already unlocked almost 400,000 appointments in the last two years".

But the latest available figures from the Welsh and UK governments show how dental treatment levels have recovered since Covid.

England completed 85% of the average number of courses of treatment being done pre-Covid, but in Wales that figure was much lower, at 58%.

Dr Russell Gidney, who runs a dental practice in Chepstow, Monmouthshire, and is a leading member of the BDA, said colleagues were abandoning their NHS contracts because of the targets they were being set, and the financial clawbacks they face if they do not treat enough patients.

He said it meant meeting targets were more important than giving people the treatment they need.

"The Welsh dental service is struggling to cope," he said.

"There are patient numbers being seen but, because practices are being pushed towards numbers of patients - although that statistic looks good - actually, what they're able to deliver on most patients, is suffering.

"It really is whitewashing the problems that are happening underneath."

On Wales being held up as an example to England, Dr Gidney said: "Fundamentally, I find it laughable.

"We've seen more clawback applied to practice since Covid.

"We see more practices hand back their contracts every year than we saw in several years pre-Covid.

"Dentists aren't happy because they can't take care of their patients.

"They can't make the business work as they want to, and fundamentally, where it carries on as it is, it is causing the patients to suffer as well."

Dr Helen Howson from the health think tank, the Bevan Commission, said the idea of cooperation in all areas of health could bring benefits.

"Partnership and collaboration will actually be a critical part of us finding the solutions we need, and working together will be important," she said.

"I think now we have a much more conducive environment to innovate and share and learn together, and that positive and constructive dialogue with all partners, whether it's England, Scotland, Northern Ireland or our international partners, can only be a good thing."

On Sunday, Health Secretary Jeremy Miles told BBC Politics Wales that, while the number of patients receiving treatment had increased in the past 18 months, with 120,000 having received urgent treatment, "dentistry isn't where we want it to be".

"What we have done is to reform the dental contract with the BDA in order to focus more on patient needs rather than those regular six monthly check-ups which most people don't need," he said.

"The task now is to see what further reforms we can make."

The Welsh government said changes introduced since 2022 have improved access for around 500,000 people.

It said it was working with the BDA to "explore how reform of the national dental contract can encourage dental practices to work together at a local level".