NHS or private for braces?

[pippy1958]

Hi there, I wonder if anyone has had this issue? Our daughter qualifies for free NHS treatment but our orthodontist has said that if we went private it would be with different types of braces and would have a better finish. We could afford it at a pinch as only have the one child and she is not in private education and while I hate to pay for something when we can get it for free, I have the nagging thought that if the outcome will be better (though apparently it will not be a great deal different) then we will at least be paying for something that will have a lasting affect. I appreciate that some people do not quality for NHS treatment, which appears to be a bit of a postcode lottery, and I should be extremely happy, but friends whose children have had braces have not been given this option, only being suggested a private option if NHS funding is not available or waiting lists are too long.

Well I have two dc that required braces. One qualified under the NHS rules due to severely overcrowded teeth, the other didn't as it was only for aesthetic/allignment reasons. The NHS treatment and the private treatment were carried out by the same orthodontist. Both treatments and outcomes were excellent.

Same as jalopy. In fact, a couple of times towards the end, dd ended up seeing ds's private guy anyway.

Oops, sorry, didn't quite read jalopy's post properly. Same surgery, same room, different chair, different dentist, same treatment, until the last couple of sessions...

And isn't it kind of in the orthodontist's interests for you to pay privately?

Like Clam, I'd be quite cynical about the orthodontist pushing private treatment that he will earn more money for than the NHS treatment she is entitled to.

I suspect the outcome will be exactly the same either way, so I would go with the NHS treatment. It will most likely be the same orthodontist, in the same room, but with slightly less fancy wires.

I'm assuming the difference in cost is thousands rather than hundreds?

Well, we are in Scotland, and I don't know if it's drastically different south of the border, but all of my three dc's have qualified for NHS, and two are still in the throes of it. Private was never suggested. Our orthodontist does both, so it would be the exact same treatment no matter which, and it is excellent. I wonder how old your dd is? Mine are all young enough that all their pals are going through the same thing and it is actually considered cool (coloured bands etc). If she is a bit older, say 16, then perhaps an invisible brace would be kinder but otherwise I wouldn't even contemplate the expenditure if you qualify for NHS. If it's the same as Scotland, that is.

Dd was told by various friends that she wouldn't be given the option of coloured bands on the nhs. Not true.

We had a referral to an orthodontist as my son's teeth were protruding slightly (an overbite I guess) and his dentist thought he qualified for nhs treatment.
The ortho kept measuring his teeth and telling us over a period of eighteen months that he didn't quite qualify but we could always opt for private treatment. After about four appts where all she did was measure the bite, I happened to mention it to our dentist as he was surprised that my son still wasn't having treatment. He was shocked and made another referral to a different ortho who, on my son's first appointment confirmed that he did qualify and 'measured' him for his retainer that day.
Nearly finished now and the treatment has been excellent - and my son has had his choice of colour of bands every time we go.
It is in the ortho's interest to 'push' you to go private as it is more money than they can charge the NHS for treatment. The original ortho also told us that we would have 'better' appt times. If we chose to go NHS we would have limited choice of appt times and they would normally be in school hours. I was really unimpressed.

My DD's just had braces on the NHS. The orthodontist told us that the cost of her treatment privately would be £3K

So I suppose it's up to you whether you can easily afford that sort of money.

I'd go with the NHS. In our case it's the same orthodontist in the same room etc, the only difference being that NHS appointments are in school time and not available out of school hours. It's a pain but worth saving £3k!