to think that dental hygienists are wildly overpriced

[exse24Londoner]

saw my dentist and he recommended I see the dental hygienist to scrape the plaque off my teeth - as one side was a concern he said an hour would be best.

when I booked in I was told it would be £178!!! for one hour!!!! WTAF??????

I had to see an osteopath the other month & she charge £60 for 50 mins - that 50 mins included a consultation with a healthcare professional educated to MSc level + diagnosis & treatment who has independent accountability.

how on earth can the dental surgery think that £178 is reasonable???? btw I am pretty certain that the majority of the cost isn't going into the pocket of the dental hygienist

Some of those definitely haven’t been updated. I know Kings College now only offer it as a degree as do EDH as I just checked. So yes there’s definitely two or three that still do you’re right. But from that list the vast majority are now degree only with degree level requirements. I trained at Kings myself doing 3 years as a diploma. It changed to a degree a few years later.

I go 3 times a year and it's £85 for half an hour plus £40 for Airflow which I don't usually get. I am a pretty good brusher and flosser but have some deep recession and a tendency to build plaque. I also think the regularity keeps me disciplined. I think it's worth it. £20ish quid a month to have white tartar-free teeth and healthy gums. I have never had any dental problems, cavities, toothache, abscesses or fillings. Gums also indicate overall health and gum disease is very bad for your arteries.

I can see why costs have increased - there is a lot of equipment and very high standards of hygiene and processing. They have to sterilise everything, change the equipment, update records plus the costs of property and increased business rates and NI will have an impact.

Is it a sensitivity type pain from the teeth or a gum tenderness type pain? If it’s sensitivity then yes receding gums can cause that as the tooth roots are exposed. Do you use a sensitive toothpaste? If not, try using one just before your appointment. Or ask the dentist or hygienist if they can apply some (or a general desensitising paste) to your teeth beforehand. In some cases (but not all) it can really help. It’s often the cold water that can make sensitivity worse if they use the ultrasonic scaler. Depending on how bad your teeth are you could also ask if they could do mainly hand scaling (scraping) as most people find this less sensitive as there’s no cold water etc.

I bought a Philips water flosser for £80 and use it everyday on my teeth. Game changer. My dentist said my gums were perfect, no need for a hygienist!

Never been to one. My dentist does it during the check up

I send my husband every couple of years. He seems to think plaque is invisible. I get my moneys worth.

Completely agree. 20 mins costs me over £70. Total rip off.

The hygienist is included for me as part of my every 6 month visit. They make about $100k here, so it’s a lucrative job!

My insurance covers the cost, so I don’t know how much it would be as a separate thing.

I’ve had this dentist for 3 years but my former dentist didn’t use a hygienist. Just a scrape and a polish at the end.

My nhs hygienist is £67 and it’s an air jet and hand scrape full clean but it doesn’t take anywhere near an hour. I can’t imagine an hour of it, it’s brutal and touches every nerve, but I hate dental work and it’s the lesser of two evils in my opinion. My last dental work was £270 for a filling!

I’m pretty sure it won’t be an NHS hygienist. It may be an NHS practice but the hygienist will be private. The NHS charges by band prices. And £67 isn’t one of them.

My dentist charged £100 for a clean . Said I needed to see a Periodontist they looked at my gums for £200 and quoted £900 for deep clean.

My dentist has a private package that charges NHS prices. You can only have a certain amount of treatments per year at those prices, but the hygienist is £25 and you wouldn't necessarily need to go more than once,maybe twice a year. I just had a white filling for approx £75 compared to £200 at my previous dentists.

There must be 1000s if people with pain, bad teeth, etc because they can't afford an appointment, it shouldn't be allowed

My previous

That is very expensive op. Mine charges 90 for 30 minutes when you go regularly, but 120 for the first appointment, its been that price for years. My dentist includes a quick clean with each check up but he doesn't do a great job, so I see the hygienist twice a year. I know its money well spent but I begrudge it if I am honest.

And that’s why we do a family visit to the dentist every year when we go abroad for holidays. Full clean for 2 adults and 2 kids for €100 (total, not each).

It is very expensive, yes. I think mine is about 90 for half an hour. I do go twice a year though (grudgingly) because I have shit teeth and have needed fewer fillings since I’ve been seeing the hygienist so they must be doing something useful.

one of the reasons for the high price is the amount and cost of the specialist equipment a dental practice has to buy. Last time I went to an osteopath, he had a treatment couch in the room. Last time I went to the dentist/hygenist they had a moving chair (cost approx £12,000-£15,000), lighting, X-ray machines, and the mechanised dental tools - drills, cleaners etc. plus there was an assistant in the room the whole time. It’s an expensive business, and this is why many practices stopped the NHS patients, as the fee they were receiving from the NHS wasn’t even covering their costs.

Mine costs £95 for 30 minutes and I need to go every 3 months. YANBU

My dentist (private) who owns the practice cleans my teeth as I won't pay for the hygienist. Saves me a fortune!

I pay less than this in Switzerland where salaries are 4 times more than the uk.

@Owttayeah probably 🤷‍♀️

i think £67 is good value to be honest, you can’t do it yourself, it saves money in the long run. My teeth feel much better and stronger

I see dental hygienist in West London and pay £80 which I think is a lot but I thought its because of where they are located. £178 is a bit wild.

I don't know what price id accept for cleaning the ming off other people's teeth but it would be more than that 🤢

Is your £80 for 30 mins though? The OP is paying £178 for an hour so not that much more.

Because they didn’t eat a modern diet full of shedloads of sugar??

I think its something like 40 minutes. Definitely less than an hour.

What would they do for a whole hour?