to think £53 for a hygienist appointment is pretty steep?

[floridadreaming]

Moved to a new part of the country - the south west from the midlands and used to paying around the £30 mark for a hygienist session. Went today and the appointment lasted 15 mins and I was faced with a £53 bill. I was a little shocked and the receptionist just mumbled 'didn't anyone tell you the price when you booked?' And looked accusingly at her colleague as if to say 'this again'.

I don't mind paying. I get it's private and they do a thorough clean but £53 just seems a bit of a piss take. It's too much for me to have done regularly now

Does seem pretty steep if it was just a regular treatment. I pay £34 in the NW.

£50 in the south east

In Midlands it's about that, costs me around £100 for 30 mins, maybe try another practice?

£40 in home counties.

Our dentist charges £55 to see the hygienist, but there is a big notice in the waiting room telling you the charges. I'm in the South East, don't know if it is the average or expensive, never been anywhere else.

£35 on south coast. shop around?

45 where I go

£55 in Cambridge at NHS practice

Mine are £45 in the south.

In sheffield, private dentist. Costs about £70-80 for the hygienist.

South West and £75 if I go with the baking soda sandblast too. Worth it but a tenner on top of the usual price. I go every 3 months so signed up to a plan to spread the load.

I'd pay any sum of money to have my teeth cleaned because I'm a bit anal about oral hygiene!

I'm in the southeast and pay £35 for up to half an hour.

£50 here in the SW but for a half-hour appointment rather than 15 mins at the one I saw who is leaving and I need to find another one.

Bloody hell - £70-80 just seems outrageous!!

Funnily enough the hygienist is only in 1 day a week in a big busy town. Doesn't seem to get much business and got an appointment quickly. Yet in my old practice in a smaller town charging £30 and she was fully booked and worked there all week.

Can't shop around as this is the only practice in a 12mile radius taking on NHS patients and you can't usually see a hygienist unless you are registered at the practice.

The appointment is booked as 30mins but it only took 15mins and my teeth were pretty manky and in need of a deep clean so I don't think it warrants that length of appointment.

Thought you were a private patient?

I pay £45, Manchester.

The one I saw was only in that practice one day a week and was so popular you had to wait months for an appointment AND pay a deposit.

I'm an NHS patient but for a deep clean or more frequently than your usual check up you need to pay privately for that bit!

£95, London W1.

Mouths are a money pit, aren't they (she said bitterly, halfway through treatment, costs racking up)

Totally agree. Couple of weeks ago went to new dentist for usual check up/get a bit of plaque off and polish (23 quid nhs). I usually forego hygienist because a quick scrape usually does he job and my teeth look pretty white/clean (do whitening strips) and never had a filling.

He said, right you see those tiny little brown bits left there, you need to get the hygienist part done for 50 quid. I said fuck it ok then let's splash out for a change, expecting to go to another room where they do fancy stuff in between the teeth etc. Oh no, he just got the same tool out and spent an extra five minutes working on the plaque. That was it, for an extra 50 quid (73 in total). He could have done that in the first place, it was NOT 50 quids worth of work!

I was secretly outraged, but he was really hot so quite enjoyed the experience. Am now fuming thinking about it!

If your teeth were in a poor state then it should take more than 15 minutes to get them in a good state, surely. About 8 years ago I skipped the hygienist deep clean for a couple of years and paid a high price. Financially. It took 3 45 min sessions to get my gob sparking and tartar/plaque free so I'm not risking that again. I do build plaque fast though!

Yes, I'm an NHS patient but you hygienist is private. My mouth isn't completely manky I guess but very in need of a good scale in one area and a polish overall.

I use an NHS dentist for check ups and pay privately for everything else if and when I need it. I haven't used an actual dentist for a clean since 1988. They just can't devote the time to doing the job as well as the hygienist. In my experience anyway.

When I was last at the hygienist I asked what the benefits/purpose of a polish is seeing as it's always a cursory whizz round the gnashers. She told me that actually it has no benefit but a lot of patients just like it. It would make no difference if I skipped it. Using the Airflow actually makes a difference so I'll stick with that and get shot of the gritty gunk that's polish.

I soooo should have been a dental hygienist!