Trouble getting a dentist

[HoneyBee03]

DS is 2.5 and I recently tried to get him registered at the dentist after a reminder from the health visitor. There was no space so I was referred to the helpline to join the waiting list. I added DS, myself and DH to the list and was told current waiting time to get a dentist is around 2 years (apparently our area has the biggest waiting list in the country).

This means that DS will start school before he's set foot in a dentist. I'm a bit concerned about it. Is it quite normal for a child to be school age before they start going to the dentist? I guess there's no other way around it but to keep brushing his teeth and hope for the best. Has anyone else been in the same situation? Should we go private and suck up the cost?

I'm aware that getting a dentist appointment at all this year has been pretty rare! But I was hoping he might get seen around the age of 3.

[dementedpixie]

Mine were all registered from around 6 months old. Why were you and your dh not registered already?

[HoneyBee03]

I've not had a dentist for about 8 years and DH about 10 years. Most people I know don't have a dentist. It's just not crossed our minds and I honestly thought I could just phone up and get my son registered when he needed to be.

[dementedpixie]

Most people i know do have a dentist and get regular check ups. And no, you can't just ring up and get registered just like that.

My dentist hasn't started doing check ups yet and is still only offering emergency treatments. You may have to pay privately to get any chance of seeing one any time soon

[LilaButterfly]

How do you not have a dentist? Dont you go for regular checks/cleaning?

[HoneyBee03]

Okay, I think it's different where I am. A lot of people rely on the emergency dentist for things like toothache. Our nearest dentist is full (that's the first place I checked for my son) and the next nearest dentist is nearly an hour away and also full.

I just wasn't sure where to turn to as I was simply told the waiting list was 2 years long and only then realised it's going to be a long time before my son manages to see a dentist.

[dementedpixie]

Did neither of you try to register before because if you had you would have made it to the top of the list already?

Private may be your only option then

[FluffMagnet]

There are a huge lack of dentists around my area too OP, and enormous waiting times. Can you contact the HV again for further advice?

[mamaof2girls]

Registered and took for a check up soon as first got teeth 2nd is 6 months with 2 teeth but due to everything haven't been able to get her registered yet! X

[HoneyBee03]

Thanks @FluffMagnet, we've been discharged from HV care now but she was always very keen to help. I think I'll give her a shout.

[Ismellphantoms]

It's not difficult to check you child's teeth. Decay starts showing as grey marks and as it progresses goes brown and then a hole. If you have a look and they are white with no marks, you can put off a check up until this pandemic so er.

[Ismellphantoms]

Is over

[stclair]

Is there a private dentist near you? They often do children’s check ups for free.

[DishRanAwayWithTheSpoon]

Your child should really be going from when they get their first teeth, around 6-12 months. Most parents take their children to their own dentist. There are people who rely on emergency dentists, however this is not a particularly sensible approach and can lead to more issues in the future. Its fairly standard to have regular dental check ups, are you not in the uk?

I would just ring around and see if anywhere will take them. Thats all you van do unless you want to pay privately, some places will take children for free if their parents are private patients

[MilkLady02]

Unfortunately a lot of NHS dental services are stretched at the best of times. This year even registered patients have not been able to get appointments. There’s usually a waiting list for NHS dental places and now it will be longer as practices don’t have capacity for their registered patients so are not in a position to accept new ones. The options will be to wait it out in the list or go private. In the meantime prevention is better than cure, so brushing morning and before bed, limit sugary foods, milk or water to drink.