I’m an NHS dentist…

Thank you for being a dentist. It always seems a bit thankless so there you go.

My three year old loves his dentist and is always asking to go see him. He also helped us out by putting him on the NHS waiting list even though we were told their waiting list was full, so full gratitude here.

Dentists are appreciated, though some people only remember this when they have tooth ache.

Of course it is. The government want to run it into the ground and make it unworkable, it’s too expensive to fund. You must know this OP?
Add to this the litigation culture now, poor remuneration, attitudes of some of the general public, utter contempt and devaluing of the NHS dentist (repeat FTAs) …it’s no suprise we’re leaving the NHS in droves.
It’s a sad state of affairs and I really feel for those patients who genuinely can’t afford private care and have valued the NHS service. NHS dentistry will be a core service only on the next ten years. It just can’t survive.

It absolutely is - Welsh Government have just scrapped a new plan for central appointments, it was all over the news yesterday. I haven't been to the dentist since I lived in the Falkland Islands because it was much easier to get an appointment there! (And the cat I was baby-sitting gave me one too many love bumps when I was brushing my teeth and chipped one!) I don't know what the answer is sadly - there used to be a notion of having these primary care hubs that would have GPs, pharmacies, dentists, all in the same place. But I think that idea died a death because (a) there weren't enough qualified people to go around and (b) people argued about the best locations for these hubs. At this point in time I am just waiting until I sell my novel, get fabulously wealthy and buy a set of veneers - not Turkey ones!