To think that dentists should be on NHS?

[foureleven]

In agony, tooth is infected (it even smells which is embarrassing) it has to come out but they want to charge £55 to look at it and a further £150 to take it out. I dont have that money!

There are NHS Dentists arent there?

They are. You just need to phone around and find them, and then get one with spaces available!!

thats bang out of order.. I had a wisdom tooth out a few months agoi... £30 all in

Not round here for emergency appointments. Id have to wait about 6 weeks by which point I predict I will be dead.
And no one will come to my funeral because I will have lost all my friends due to grumpiness as in pain... and horrendous breath.

And even on NHS you have to pay. Just not quite as much.

frasersmummy - shut up! Where do you live..?

Oh shit sorry frasers mummy - I say 'shut up!' in RL meaning 'NO WAY?!' In a nice and jokey way... sorry

Are you on the books of an NHS dentist? You shouldn't have to wait 6 weeks for an appointment if you are registered with one.

You have to pay, same as you have to pay for prescriptions and spectacles, unless you are on a very low income or in an exempt group. Otherwise taxes have to go up even more.

No I'm not with an NHS dentist... I could kick myself.

I think theres a website that identifies NHS dentists in your area with available spaces....

www.nhs.uk/Pages/HomePage.aspx

You could give that a go and that see if it's any good. I used that, or something similar, when I moved house and found an NHS dentist and GP quite easily from what I remember.

we have been on the waiting list for a dentist in our area for 2 years my husband is currently having work done we have paid for privately as the emergency nhs dentist will only do temporary fillings. The total is over £450! luckily they will allow you to pay in stages.
It should be NHS but there just are not enough spaces to go round!

Our local hospital offers an out of hours dentistry service for emergencys. Might be worth considering?

I didn't think an NHS dentist could refuse to treat in an emergency? My DH wasn't registered with a dentist at all and he had a really bad infection couple of years ago, the private dentist treated him as an nhs patient.

Do you have any dental hospitals/schools nearby? They often run emergency clinics free of charge

Don't suffer in silence. The NHS should be able to sort you out as an emergency patient. I had a similar situation a couple of months ago, rang the NHS number and got antibiotics from an emergency cover dentist. then they found me an NHS dentist to register with. I think it's the NHS direct number 0845 4647 if you're in England. HTH. Toothache HURTS!

I know its a PITA trying to find an NHS dentist but most countries don't have any state dental care at all so I guess we're quite lucky really. Then again isn't it cheaper to be treated abroad...I remember reading something about dental tourism.

Dental care SHOULD be NHS, but getting into one is like finding hens' teeth. I was sent a list by by local authority of NHS dentists taking on patients and basically I need to learn to drive to bloody get to one ( 7 miles and 23 miles away). I feel we have all been cheated. My local dentist, only 500 yards away, takes private patients only as their NHS list is full.

Did I dream it or are we supposed to be entitled accessible and free or very subsisded state dental care?

foureleven, if you're in a lot of pain you can go to a&e and get emergency dental treatment

if it isn't painful then get booked in and wait the 6 weeks.. but ask them to ring you if they get a cancellation?

OUUUUCH its painful...!

Will try NHS direct, thanks.

Ring an NHS dentist and tell them you need an emergency appt.

I did this and they saw me that morning.

at shut up...

I am just outside Glasgow...

I think I am really lucky Its a family practice dad has just retired and handed over to daughter

have been registered here since I was 7. I have just registered ds for nhs with them no bother at all

I think it's disgraceful that the kind of dentist treatment you are entitled to is like a lottery. It shouldn't be like that - Either everyone should be entitled, or no-one should.

We have an emergency dental access centre for the County (kind of a central hub). They treated my infected wisdom tooth (took it out) and gave me names of NHS dentists with current vacancies. I was treated straight away, but was pregnant so not sure if that gave me priority?

Go to A&E. You shouldn't have to put up with that pain. Toothache is awful.

Try this website for your nearest Dental Access Centre. Good luck

DON'T go to A+E with dental problems. You need a dentist, not a doctor. You will be given the above numbers and some pain relief, and told nicely to go away and find a dentist.

Unless you're actually septicaemic with the infection, in which case you're excitingly medical.