PPE charge at dentists?

[stayingaliveisawayoflife]

I was going to go for my check up which was booked before all the crazy happened. I have been told that there is a £20 surcharge for PPE. Looking at the info I will be given two squirts of anti bac and a pair of gloves I have to throw away before I leave. It is a private dentist.

I think it grates because I pay for extra PPE and anti bac products to keep my classroom clean and now I suspect I am being charged to pay for PPE for the practice staff.

Has anyone heard of this happening elsewhere? Is it just common practice now and I need to suck it up?

Individual surgeries may not be profiteering from PPE charges but in view of the huge increase in costs for such products from 'before' compared to now, someone, somewhere down the line, sure as hell is! And while I understand the usual principle of supply and demand, the fact that healthcare manufacturers/suppliers are making a fast buck out of a global health crisis is morally reprehensible. But of course dentists are over a barrel because they can’t operate without it, whatever the price.

Trouble is, that even prior to Covid, many people who could ill afford to do so were effectively forced into private dentistry because it was utterly impossible to register as an NHS patient. This wasn't a luxury but a last resort in the absence of any other option and something that had to be very carefully scrimped and saved for. The additional charge for PPE at every visit (when it's common to need at least two appointments if treatment is required) won't simply be a minor annoyance for those in that position but an absolutely impossible cost they can't meet and will invariably mean that (even) more people will now be excluded from dental care completely. Add in all those affected by furlough, redundancy, reduced hours etc and the adverse effect on the nation's teeth (and oral health generally, e.g. early flagging of cancers) is going to be significant because many won't seek help until they're in agony. And maybe not even then.

I won't hold my breath hoping for the government to ensure that affordable dental treatment is available to all who need it. It hasn't been for a long time, not really and they've not given a shit. But it's yet another area whose shortcomings are being laid bare more than ever by Covid and it's only going to get worse. We'll be seeing the return of 'barber surgeons' on the high street next for all those who can't afford a professional to pull their disease raddled teeth.

I wanted to clarify. I'm not disputing for one moment that effective PPE is required, nor that it obviously doesn't come free. This additional cost however, will exclude significant numbers from accessing dental care and this should be a government concern.

Being 'glad' that dentists are open again, or that you can't put too high a price on dental treatment, or whatever, is beside the point. Not everyone has the privilege of being able to absorb the new costs associated with those opinions.

Absolutely. Sadly nhs dentistry has not been on any government radar for a long time and this is unlikely to change. Blaming dentists does not help as we are as frustrated as patients.

I don't think it is 'profiteering' as such but when I think of an average dentist salary compared to mine and the fact that I am self employed but not passing any extra costs onto my clients and that I have been paying Denplan throughout lockdown. I don't think it is fair.

I think £20 is reasonable. I went multiple times during COVID and every time I paid a 50 € surcharge for PPE.

I have received an email from my dentist:
Charges for PPE are either £8 or £35 (dependent on the treatment and amount of ‘spray’ - apologies for the technical term!)
The charges only apply to some private patients.They’re free for NHS patients (or, should I say, included within the NHS fee) and private patients who have a monthly plan.
This means a visit to my hygienist will be iro £84. Fortunately I have Denplan.

I presume most people are paid an hourly rate. If it usually takes an hour to do a set task you get paid for an hours work. If post Covid the same job takes two hours and you can’t use your office/equipment for the second hour how would you feel if your company reduced your hourly rate by 50% to accommodate this. This is what is happening in dentistry. We are lucky in our practice since after a major refit we have two extra surgeries. So instead of two new dentists starting the existing dentists will be playing musical surgeries. The increased capacity for NHS is now on hold.
As for PPE you have no idea how increasingly costly it has become. We have to abide by the rules because it is our staffs lives we are protecting!
I worked in surgery on Tues and the PPE is pretty unbearable. We can only see one patient in the practice at a time until next week then we will have two dentists working every day. The refit means we can be almost back to normal because social distancing of 1m will be much easier in our setting.This will not be the case for many surgeries.

@catsmother - very good points.

Consider yourself lucky with £20 surcharge for PPE. I had to take my teenagers to a private dentist last week and they charged £104 for extra PPE! I was shocked but needed the appointment.

I went to the dentist the Thursday after they opened - no PPE charge, and an excellent service (private).

You are private, so you can shop around. Their survival is not your responsibility.