AIBU to think children should get free dental treatment

[Angelfire84]

My dentist, like the majority in my area, has recently become private. My DD (13) needs braces and the orthodontist has said she needs to have 4 teeth removed first. I need to pay £420 for her teeth to be removed. AIBU to think children should still be entitled to free dental treatment even if the dentist has gone private. I have tried to get her into a NHS dentist but none of the NHS dentists in my area are taking on new NHS patients.

The whole dentistry issue is ridiculous. There is money that isn't being spent while dental health in children and adults is being ignored. Not everyone can afford private.

Absolutely

Many more dentists take on children than adults. Keep looking. I know the system is shit and the way of finding out which practices are taking on new patients is equally shit

Could you get her into an NHS dentist that's further away? It's disgusting that children aren't entitled to free dental care no matter what.

The issue is that there just isn’t enough NHS dentists because there isn’t enough funding for it, so private dentists aren’t going to treat for free because they aren’t charities and there simply isn’t enough funding to expand NHS dentistry.

It’s a huge problem though I agree.

Find another nhs dentist by hook or by crook. It’s so expensive otherwise.

I guess it's not essential treatment so not eligible for NHS, probably considered cosmetic, if it's to do with braces.

Yes we've had this issue. Just had to pay for the teeth removal and swallow the cost. I felt lucky DD was still getting NHS orthodontics as that would have been eye watering.

We've changed dentist 3 times, there just are no NHS one's locally now taking on children.

"AIBU to think children should still be entitled to free dental treatment even if the dentist has gone private."

I know what you mean, but I don't think it would work. In reality children are NEVER actually entitled to free dental treatment, in the same way as no one is entitled to free GP or hospital treatment actually. In reality what happens when you or your child access free NHS medical care is the dentist or other worker is being paid either totally or for that particular appointment by funding that has probably gone into the NHS via the government through money they have collected from us collectively in taxes. A private dentist has no link to the NHS or this money, so they couldn't receive this money for your child's care, which is why you have to pay.

No as DD'S orthodontics where considered nessarcy under the NHS, but the teeth removal needed to carry out the work we had to pay for because that's the dentists area not the orthodontist. Crazy isn't it.

All dentists are private, they have only ever carried out work for the NHS (a bit like GP'S) under licence. We have had 2 dentists that would do NHS work on the children as long as we where private. But even dentists have stopped doing that now here as well. They just don't get enough money back from the government for doing NHS care so as a business can't afford to do it anymore.

Why doesn’t the orthodontist remove them? I assumed they would. Adult teeth remove al is about £75 on the NHS, so not exactly cheap.

I definitely think dentists shouldn’t be allowed to go private and leave people with no access to NHS care.

Because that is not part of the work that orthodontists do, it's a dentists job. So they would have no experience in removing teeth. 😕

Yes we have no NHS dentists where I live. It's a massive issue. I wouldn't mind so much paying private myself if I knew my children at least would get seen on the NHS. Sadly the shortage means no where is taking on NHS patients.

All dentistry (medical) should be free. Oral health is the gateway to other health. We know this. Our mouths have important good bacteria and without it our health can plummet - poor oral hygiene is linked to heart conditions and more.

Dentistry needs a shake up ASAP. The whole system is ridiculous.

It depends, I had a sibling who had braces and other treatments that were a medical requirement, not just cosmetic. Overlapping teeth or under/overbites aren’t just about looks, they can have a medical effect if left untreated.

I'm surprised by this. Back in my extremely long-ago childhood, when OF COURSE dental treatment was free, I had 5 teeth removed due to overcrowding but braces would've had to be paid for. Perhaps they'd have been covered as an alternative to extractions? I don't know.

I came to like my crooked dentition, but had no choice really.

I was in the same boat and eventually managed to find an NHS dentist to take DS on 90 mins away, but by the time I worked out how much it would cost me to take the days off to take him it worked out cheaper to just pay in the end.

I emailed my MP five times about the issue and never even got a response so they don't give a shit either. Whole situation is a disgrace.

My daughter has just had her braces off, her dentist said she would definitely need teeth removed but the (NHS) orthodontist said he'd only needed teeth removed for braces twice in 20 years and it was outdated.

Could you try some dentists further away? I think we have some arrangement in our area where you can register with an NHS dentist in the next county.

Yes I agree with you. Hope things go well with getting a dentist. I'm sorry you are having to deal with this. You sound like a great mum.

I agree, but I think it should be free for adults too.

I do agree with you, but getting NHS dentists is nigh on impossible in my area. I did my degree in Wales and got a dentist in my university town easily. When I moved back to the North of England, I tried for around 2 years before I managed to find an NHS dentist!
They were OK but not great and it was a revolving door of dentists which isn't great when you're nervous.

We are with a private dentist now. I pay for a plan (most do) £16 a month covers me and my 11 year old for routine check ups, hygienist and x-rays.

If you need work doing, you do pay, but he charges similar to NHS.

I have just had quite a complicated filling on a tooth I broke years ago (previous NHS dentists didn't do a great job of fixing it!). He had to drill it out, drill some tooth, seal the nerve, fill and re-build the tooth. Charged me £130 which I felt was quite reasonable for what he did.

I do feel for people who cannot afford to pay privately though and many can't 😔

The dentistry issue in this country is a real problem. Cant blame dentists for going private when they do such a skilled and difficult job that takes years of training but if they stay on the NHS, they will be paid peanuts.

YANBU.

Dentistry in this country is a joke. Our family's NHS dentist is 200 miles away. It was the closest we could get. So many around us are forced into unaffordable private dentist places; or if they're lucky, local clinics for children until they're 16 or so. Crazy.

There's another good reason NHS dentists go private - a huge percentage of those who study dentistry are private school pupils who have no intention of staying in the NHS.

I teach in a state school and I had 2 pupils who really wanted to do dentistry at university, but to even get an interview you need to do an entry aptitude exam. We then discovered to ace these you need coaching - money which neither the school nor these pupils had. Both these pupils got A grades at A Level and would have been exactly the sort of person who would have stayed with the NHS.

The whole dentistry industry needs overhauling to remove the elite entry it currently has.