DS called 111 for cracked tooth, won't help?

[Bibboo]

He doesn't have a dentist as we moved and haven't found an NHS dentist available.

Weeks ago he cracked his tooth. He says it is cracked in half.

He wouldn't ring to get any help but its hurting him a lot.

He finally rang 111 today and they said because there is no bleeding its not an emergency.

What is he supposed to do? It obviously needs extracting.

He is autistic and really scared of the dentist so hid it for a while (he is 21)
He lost his job a couple of months ago too so that is an added issue as I don't think he is covered for NHS treatment? Im not sure how it works.

Can anyone help pls?

I would call again. Thats a crap response. Especially if its causing him pain.

He can't sleep or eat.

I don't think he has answered them properly, I told him to call with his Dad but he rang on his own and I really don't think he has expressed himself properly.

I’d ring back in a few hours and say the pain has gotten worse.

I don’t know much about it but I’m sure my DB got seen because he was in pain and had no blood - this was a couple of years ago though.

What a truly horrible suggestion!

He needs to call the dental line at 8am and state he’s in excruciating pain and distress, and state he’s disabled. They do have emergency appointments but they go to those who need them most, hence emphasis on pain level. You pay the standard nhs level 1 treatment cost unless you have certain benefits or other exemptions, it’s about £25

You can do it online. I would put in another request

Look up where your nearest dental hospital is and go as A and E. If the tooth has to be extracted, the NHS rate is about £250 at the dentist, so the only way to get this resolved without fees is to go to the dental school emergency dept.

NHS rate is not £250
It is £76.60
£47 if you are in Wales

This happened to me and I arsed around for ages trying to get seen by a dentist (I was registered but they had no actual dentist because they had all left) and trying to get registered with other nhs dentists. I phoned 111 and they said I could go to a ‘sit and wait’ at the dental hospital an hour away but when I went, as soon as it opened, they said that they didn’t see everyone every day.

I ended up going private. I really wish that my nhs dental practice or 111 had just said ‘look, you aren’t going to get seen by a dentist’ rather than telling me to keep trying.

Are you near any universities with dental schools?

The other option is calling again and saying he’s in severe pain and it’s getting worse and they should refer to an emergency dentist. The emergency dentist will only treat the immediate issue though (like infection) and may not actually do an extraction so he would still need to see a private dentist

If hes not working he should get nhs treatment free

I paid £400 for my DS to have a tooth extracted at a specialist clinic for anxious patients. Two lovely nurses were with him the whole time taking his mind off it. He had gas and air before the injection.

Yes, but unless there's a nearby dentist willing to treat him, he's still stuffed.

Why? Needs must. He’s in severe pain and being fobbed off.

I live in an area with no nhs dentists. In theory anyone needing emergency nhs care calls 111 for an appointment, but in reality there is such a high demand that they only see people in unmanageable pain or with an obvious infection.

It does sound, if he can't sleep or eat, that he should qualify even under that criteria. He needs to call and then pass the phone to someone who can advocate for him, if he's not able to advocate for himself.

Have you checked here, even if you need to travel. Or can you possibly go back to your old dentist? That might be cheaper than £400 ish for a private extraction. https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist/

I have a dentist and I recently had a cracked tooth . It is not classed as an emergency and I had to wait a few weeks for the next available appointment to have it removed. It is so painful.

Hi @Bibboo go to a pharmacist and ask them for ibuprofen with codeine. Explain its dental and probably an exposed nerve. It's for very short term use only as opoid, he won't be able to drive whilst taking them.

I had similar and had to spend £600 on emergency private dental surgery. I couldn't couldn't get an emergency dental appointment with my current dentist. Receptionist suggested I use sensitive toothpaste and wait 10 days! Pharmacist was helpful.

Nope. Not truly horrible. It'd be nice to live a life where that was what you considered truly horrible though. I congratulate you on your superior life choices and ability to pay for private dentistry. Or possibly your hyperbole. Definitely congratulations on something or other though.

A bit selfish yes, but needs must. Martyrs don't get help, but selfish people do and I can't afford private dentistry for my family. Like I say, there's never not been an emergency need and this country offers emergency NHS dentistry. Not my problem the system is failing - it was my problem (well, more DPs) when 111 dental triage led to him getting sepsis though, so no, I don't trust their judgement. I trust the judgment of the dentist I then get to see who has always felt emergency treatment was necessary. They'll even do follow up treatment booked in after too, under their stabilisation scheme if you've got ongoing issues until everything is sorted. That was great - I got his whole mouth sorted on the back on one painful tooth snapped in half, including full a full upper denture, from that one selfish phone call. I think it was about 6 extractions, antibiotics and a plate all by insisting they were wrong and actually it was too much pain to cope with and was affecting his daily life and mental health and despite what they thought he did need to be seen immediately.

(DP can't advocate for himself very well due to brain injury and disability. I do all his medical stuff, before anyone is annoyed I'm sorting it for him. I'd recommend OP phones on her son's behalf as you need to be good at advocating to get anywhere sensible with 111 and as a young man with autism he would likely benefit from help expressing his level of issue. )

OPs son obviously needs a dentist and this will get him seen. A tooth cracked in half is an emergency dental need, and he has a right to emergency NHS dentistry. It's not going to get better on it's own, only worse. It's hardly even lying - it'll have an infection soon if it doesn't already.

Is there any possibility of going back to your old dentist? Did you actually re-register?
My DC both moved away but come back here for their dental check ups.

It’s an outside chance but has he definitely been taken off the books of the previous dentist? Ring and check if you could make an appointment with them. A train fare might be cheaper than a private dentist.

Whereabouts in the UK are you? I used to work for 111 on the dental line.

I’d call back and see if you can get any recommendations but would brace yourself that you may need to go private. Are there any dental schools at hospitals/unis near you?

Can you call his previous dentist? If you explain the situation they may put him back on the books as a private patient and if it’s a familiar surgery to him he may find that easier to handle with his ASD.

Failing that I’d say call a local surgery but be prepared for £££. Most do payment plans.

Call again tell them that he is in lots of pain probably with an infection in a cracked tooth. 111 only deal with emergency dental work. If he's given the impression that he has a cracked tooth that's not infected or very painful, it won't be an emergency. Because 111 only deal with emergency dental work, it won't be anything for them to deal with in that case. If 111 can't do anything, see if you have a local dental hospital near you and ring for advice.

Someone feom NHS called him back and told him to phone again tomorrow morning at 8am so he can try and get an appointment, as they were all gone.

If he can't get one then somewhere near me does extraction for £250 plus £50 appointment.

I will see if I can use my 'klarna anywhere' split in 3 thingy

Are there any local nhs dentists locally who will see him as an emergency? Some will see non patients for a dental emergency but you’ll need to ring or go in first thing. He’ll need to take proof of universal credit if he gets an nhs appointment or he’ll have to pay.