To think this must be making dentists life difficult?

[denimflowers]

Just a caveat that I'm sure this is all covid and it's crap for everyone. I know I am BU really. Just very miserable at the moment

Dentist check ups were all stood down over covid and then I've had 3 cancelled due to dentist cancelled / I had covid / covid in the house etc etc. All rebooked but pushed back later and later. Cancel in February rebooked to July - nothing sooner. The only option is routine check up or severe pain / emergency appt with whoever free in the practice.

Obviously I've now entered a dental disaster period. Out of nowhere I've got 4 teeth that are hurting. Went for emergency appt, had to have an extraction. Appointment lasted over an hour as complicated then needed 4 more emergency appointment due to complications (stitches / infection / dry socket etc) - I guess this could have been possibly been avoided with a sooner check up.

Every time I've seen a different dentist there they've all said the same - you need a good check up / full X-rays so we can get a full plan of what's going on and needed. But there aren't any appointments. All I can have is a patch up job as emergency and wait for July - and hope that isn't cancelled too.

Surely every time I go in for an emergency it's more work (especially as I'm the sort that nothing ever goes smoothly for). I don't even know how they fit in routine treatment after a check up as that doesn't seem to be an option. I'm on a waiting list for a cancellation check up but my work in a hospital means I can't just drop and run easily.

I'm exhausted with the mental load of this. How I'm going to get the next problem sorted, how will I manage work, how am I going to eat at the moment as it's all uncomfortable. I'm not sleeping and losing weight.

I know it's shit for dentists too though. They can't like working like this either.

And to add - I'm NHS patient (thank god - couldn't afford private) - so can't find somewhere else as no other NHS dentists taking on in my county. I assumed it was because of being NHS but a friend who is there as private said it's not much different - still a really long wait for anything. They actually treat NHS patients quite well and are nice there. It's just frustrating.

Yanbu op, I think the closure of dentistry was very shortsighted, they should have been allowed to stay open obviously with some control measures in place.

Yes it’s a disaster! Slightly better if you go private

i am worried that my dentist will refuse to see me on the nhs after so long

I would write to your dentist explaining what you've written here, and ask to be put on a cancellation list for the next available routine exam slot.
Then I would politely keep calling and asking. Try and stay high up on their radar. Tell them you are flexible ( even if you aren't)
Yes, it's shit. It's not the dentists fault generally. We've had a tough few years.

YANBU, a friend of mine is a dental nurse and the hoops they have to jump through now are unbelievable

My dentist told me that there are 30 million people not registered with a dentist.

Mine has been good at keeping open through most of Covid and I managed to get an emergency appointment the other day.

I went on Friday and everything is back to normal at our dentists now. She was saying how pleased she was to be able to use all the instruments again as they'd been restricted to things like only being able to use hand instruments to scale with. Apparently one of the hygienists has developed carpal tunnel syndrome, thought to be a result of this! But my dentist used the ultrasonic scaler this time and said they're now doing everything as normal.
It's a private practice though - I dont know if that makes a difference. You are more likely to see a unicorn than an NHS dentist in these parts.

Was it not possible for a check up and xrays to be done at one of the emergency appointments ?

That's awful.

I have been really happy that our NHS dentist reopened for routine appointments last summer. The hygienist has only just started using the water jet again but still cleaned prior to that using hand tools.

Thats awful!! I feel a bit bad now, my 10yo stepdaughter hasn't seen a dentist for at least 2y, probably a lot more, and has visible cavities and regular tooth pain, sometimes severe. She lives in another country (in uk) and her dad hasn't been able to register her with a second dentist here. Her mum just says "it's covid" and I thought she was an absolute disgrace to let this situation carry on (dad also useless as hasnt tried hard enough). But maybe it's actually true?

For context me or my kids haven't missed a 6 monthly check up throughout - we had one in Jan 2020 then another in the September so that was the only delay. So I really didn't know the situation was still so bad elsewhere

I hear ya @denimflowers Me and DH have been fairly fortunate. We had dental check ups in Dec 2019, just before the whole covid thing started, and neither of us needed treatment. They closed end of March 2020.

Mid April 2020 I got a bad pain in what seemed to be the nerve of a top tooth. Suffered for 3 or 4 days, and it got more intense each day.

Panicked as they were shut of course. By day 4, I self-medicated with cocodomol and brandy! Knocked back 4 or 5 shorts, with 3 cocodomol. I know this sounds bad, but the pain diminished by 50% overnight. Did the same the next day. By the end of the next day the pain was gone.

Anyway, I digress. They reopened July 2020, and everything was fine with that tooth when I went for a check up in late September, but I did need a filling re-doing at the back. DH got seen the same day and was OK. Nothing needed doing.

We both went May 2021, and all was OK with our teeth again.

However, we both had check-ups booked for mid Jan 2022, and it's been cancelled three times. It was cancelled in mid Jan and rebooked for late Feb, then cancelled again and rebooked for early APRIL, then they tried to cancel AGAIN, and rebook for late JUNE. I had had part of another filling chip off, and said 'Sorry, but I really can't wait another 2 months.' So they squeezed me in with another dentist, who fixed it for me (early April.) DH's appointment has been changed to late June though. Hope it's not cancelled again!

Oddly they seemed to not be too far behind when they first re-opened (August 2020) but by late 2021/early 2022, they seemed to be really dropping behind. A couple of dentists leaving, a couple getting covid and being off for 2-3 weeks, and a couple more going on holiday and being away for 3 weeks and 2 months respectively has not helped the situation.

At least we are registered with an NHS dentist though, And we are thankful for that, because we know if something goes wrong and we are in bad pain, that we will be seen within a day. SO many people cannot get onto an NHS Dentist waiting list (or have been kicked off for not attending for 2 years,) so we are happy we are registered with one.

Hope you get it sorted!

Sounds awful.

An awful lot of non-urgent healthcare seems to have been cancelled in the UK due to Covid when it has continued perfectly fine in other countries.

Where I live dentists continued to work the whole time.

This is true. ^ And I do wonder why.

I didn’t realise dentists ever shut… ours didn’t, but it’s private. Are these NHS dentists that closed?

I think they will open an enquiry eventually, as to why dentistry shut in UK and not elsewhere. They theory was that dental treatment, specifically aerosol generating procedures causes an increase risk of transmitting viruses. I get that totally. However the decisions were based on very little evidence. And, at the time there was very little appropriate PPE available. In fact, our practice donated our stock to a couple of hospitals and nursing homes.

Thankfully we got up and running by July 2020, but there have been so many other factors that have caused ongoing problems-

1. Recruitment crisis in Scotland. The Scottish universities didn't let any final year students graduate last year. A lot of dentists took early retirement so there are simply not enough dentists to manage the situation. This will take a fair few years to right itself
2. Fallow times. After a procedure finished we needed to vacate the room for an hour, then do a deep clean before it could be used again. Thankfully, with increased ventilation slowly being established across the board, those measures have been reduced finally.
3. Practices closing their lists and not taking any other patients on. They simply cannot cope with their existing list never mind taking on extra.
4. Patients presenting late, either through stretched services not coping, or patients own decision. A lot of patients were anxious to attend for a long time. When they've finally showed up, problems have become bigger than what they would have been, had they attended earlier.
5. Limited referral infrastructure. General dentists having to deal with longer more complicated oral surgery procedures as standard waiting lists for max fax topping 2-3 years at present.
6. Initial PPE restrictions. Especially in the early days we were only provided with enough PPE for 5 treatments a day.

@LittleRen every dental practice in the UK ( government orders ) shut from end March 2020 for several months. It was illegal to see patients face to face
Several urgent hubs were set up in the weeks that followed.
Some practices, mainly private, as had less administrative restrictions managed to source PPE etc by maybe June 2020 at the earliest, and started offering a limited service at that point.

my dh has been having treatment
i just havent been because i havent needed to

Terrifying article in the Guardian recently about a BBC journalist's nightmare trying to get appropriate dental treatment. It was exacerbated by the closure of dentists during the lockdown: www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2022/apr/20/dentists-would-not-treat-my-toothache-now-my-health-has-been-wrecked-for-ever?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Othe

Apologies can't seem to make it clickable.

Yay, it was clickable 😬

I've had, and am having, my own share on on going dental issues too so I sympathise.

Be careful @MrsLargeEmbodied that you do attend when asked (for your regular check-ups.) People have been booted off their dental practice lists for not attending for over 2 years. (And they don't take the whole covid thing into account at all.)

Well not sure it is that shit for dentist tbh. I can get an appointment in days privately with at least 10 surgeries but ifI want NHS the only place currently taking on is about 5 miles away and booked for months.

that is what i was worried about @CrashBandicootOnSanityBeach
very odd not to take covid into account

stealth pruning of their nhs clients

I have suspected this too!!!