To think Dentists are greedy and disgrace

[Thisismynamenow]

I have a hole in my tooth (thanks pregnancy for the poor teeth!)

My nhs dentist has apparentpy cancelled their nhs contract to go private (without telling patients) and not a single dentist within 20 miles is willing to take on nhs, but everyone can offer same day private appointments.

I know the nhs is underfunded but it's disgusting dentists are allowed to be only private, they should be made to be half nhs!

My tooth is killing me, I can't afford the £400 I've been quoted for the filling (it's a tiny hole, literally a pin hole!) And the hopsitall will only pull it which I don't want. Its annoying me more as i currently have a maternity exemption which I can't use.

Aibu to think dentists are greedy, and that it shouldn't be allowed?

You are angry at the wrong people. This is not the fault of Dentists, it’s the fault of the Government. If as a nation we want NHS dental treatment then we are going to have to make it bloody clear to the politicians. We used to have it yes, but slowly and surely it’s been withdrawn, other NHS services are also disappearing.

You think after 5 years of privately funded university for a maters in dentistry and £100ks of debt they shoukd work for £30 to £40k per year for the NHS (and yes that is how low the pay in on NQ dentists. My friend is one.
They are no more obligated to work in the public sector for peanuts than anyone else is.
They know their worth so good for them if they don't want to work for a shit wage and long hours for miserable entitled public and chose to be private practice.

The state of NHS dentistry is shocking but that's down to the government, not individual dentists or practices.

I haven't been able to access an NHS dentist for almost a decade - I have to drive 30 miles and pay private.

How exactly do you intend to force someone to work for an employer - slavery? You do know it's illegal in the UK, don't you?

I think like other medical care, dentistry should be free at the point of use and paid for as part of out NI contributions.

Being able to access a dentist should be seen as much of a right as accessing a GP is. Especially for children!!

OP, once you have been treated, take out private dental insurance. It costs about £9 a month, and covers check ups, elective and emergency treatments.

Actually this is not ALL the governments fault-some dentists ARE greedy-I used to work in a practice where all three of the dentists did both NHS and private work, and they were paid perfectly fairly for the NHS work, just not as much as they wanted. And nowhere as much as they could get privately. In fact they were so greedy and grasping it nearly made my hair stand on end.
So, OP, yanbu.

And people wonder why dentists are leaving the profession in droves...

It takes years to learn how to complete operative procedures effectively and safely. Under the NHS, the dentist barely earns enough for the materials and staff costs per procedure. That's why so many can't offer NHS treatment any more; if they did they simply wouldn't have enough money to keep their doors open. Much less to pay themselves a wage... (like, y' know, a clinical professional deserves...)

Incidentally, the cavity you have is solely because you have chosen to eat the foods that cause it , and /or not clean your teeth adequately. HTH.

Frankly, yes.

With a thread like this……. I’m surprised more aren’t leaving. A completely under valued profession.
Not valued my the government nor the general public it seems

It obviously isn’t a tiny pin hole if it’s giving you pain. To cause pain the decay must be close to the pulp so it’s a big hole under the surface.
I would like to know how you intend to force independent contractors to work in the NHS if they don’t want to? The only way to do this would be to make it attractive. The only way to make it attractive would be to have better pay and conditions than the private sector.
This is absolutely a political issue and not really anything to do with individual dentists who are just trying to make a living.

Absolutely this, well said @catlovingdoctor
Caries is a preventable disease and pregnancy isn’t an excuse.

One of the reasons you can't get an NHS hygienist appointment is because Hygienists are not allowed to work directly for the NHS. They can only work self employed under the practice. And the practice set the prices and terms etc. So if you think the hygienist is earning £75 for the appointment you are very wrong. At the maximum it'll be 40% of that. But could easily only be 30%.
I know plenty of hygienists who would happily work for the NHS if they could be employed. As self employed they get no sick or holiday or maternity pay benefits. So feel free to campaign for hygienists to be allowed to be employed by the NHS on a fair wage and I can guarantee you that would be plenty that would take it.

My excellent dentist is still NHS but moving over to private & up-selling the private stuff all of a sudden. I use the same dentist surgery as my partner & suddenly we are both developing leaky fillings or needing new crowns. I think they're under pressure to do this and the government dental funding is alot to blame. Is going to a dental school eg Guy's, as a supervised guinea pig still a thing?

There's another thing. Part of the NHS charge for a check up is scaling if needed, so why won't the dentist ever perform this any more? If they say you need it they refer you to the hygienist as a separate private service, when it should be provided within the NHS charge.

Because the nhs fee for a scale doesn’t cover the costs

My dentist does this. I a scale and polish as part of my check up.

I don't agree. I never need any fillings, my check up takes two minutes, it would take my dentist five minutes to remove any excess build up of tartar. I don't require a half hour £75 full hygienist appointment and not do most people. It's a money making venture

@PurpleDaisies you're lucky and the exception I would imagine

Yes, treatment at a dental school by trainees under close supervision by experienced professionals is still a thing.
Feel free to earnestly thank the students who are essentially working for free..

Unfortunately a huge number of the population have gum disease , and it does take a full half hour to do a thorough scale together with any advice needed.

Surprising the absolute contempt professionals have for the very people who are paying them for a service. This in part is a huge issue of why people avoid seeing a dentist, because of the judgement they get. People absolutely do have conditions that affect their teeth such as those on certain long term medications. The OP is trying to get help before it becomes worse but is upset at the price. Nobody is de-valuing the work dentists do, however it is simply unaffordable to some people.

Well this is fine for people who HAVE got gum disease, but not a valid excuse just to palm everyone patient off onto the hygienist

@Thefoxsays absolutely agree

YANBU. You have my sympathy. I am so sorry @Thisismynamenow