Orthodontist and periodontal appts waiting years now

[Needacupofteaandcrackers]

The dentist sent a NHS referral 2 years ago for my daughter, thought we were on the waiting list and have been chasing!!!! It has been rejected a couple of times once for X-ray and address issues now it has to be resent again by dentist, for unknown reason. What is really going on ???? There isn’t a real NHS waiting list is there ???

Waiting list times for orthodontics in our area is two to three years. If referral needs to be resent you go back down to bottom of waiting list .

Periodontal waiting list is not available in our area at all as there are no specialists . In the areas where it is available waiting lists are mostly years .

Government spending on dentistry has gone down year on year for decades now .

@Lollygaggle thanks I asked how much was the private appt … it’s running in to hundreds just for an initial appt

How old is she? Is she waiting for braces or something else?

DH was referred to the dental hospital for bleeding gums and gum recession. Thought to be genetic because his dad and grandfather had the same. His 1st referral was also rejected. He thinks the dentist didn't tick something on the form, but not sure. Long story short, he waited nearly 2yrs for an appointment.

It's been ridiculous for a long time. DD was referred when the dentist wasn't sure whether there was an issue or not, on the grounds that the waiting list usually took 18 months - 2 years, so it was better to get her on it in case it did turn out to be necessary. If the waiting list wasn't so long, probably fewer children would be put on it, as the dentists could keep monitoring and refer them when the position is clearer.

(In our case the only additional delay was that covid hit just as she would have got to the top of the list.)

Periodontal treatment isn’t available in my area on the NHS. You have to pay for it if it’s important tbh.

I’ve been on the periodontal waiting list for a year now and still don’t even have an appointment, so I imagine it will be at least 2 years from referral

I think my daughter waited about 2 years for her initial orthodontic assessment for braces. Then it was another 8-10 months before her treatment started after I chased up (then we were delayed by our dentist for the preparatory work). So almost 3 years in total from referral to braces being fitted. I think they’re just massively short of orthodontists.

No there are more dentists and orthodontists registered than there have ever been. However investment in NHS dental services is decreasing every year and no more money is being put in.

The government is shuffling the deckchairs on the titanic , there is no more money for NHS dental services than the £30 odd per person treated per year including patient charges .