Tom Brake's 'Desperate for Dentists' campaign

My 2007 Health Survey revealed that 71% of residents have experienced difficulty registering with a local NHS dentist. I have launched a campaign to lobby the government and ensure locals are no longer 'Desperate for Dentists.'

Tom visits a local dental practice to discover first-hand what impact new dental contracts have had.

This problem is not solely confined to Carshalton and Wallington - nationally 75% of dentists are 'not taking on NHS patients.' It is apparent that there is a real crisis in Dental Care in the UK.

The new NHS Dentist contracts, which the Labour Government promised would allow dentists to take on another 2 million NHS patients, have failed and done little to ease the problem. In fact, more than 1,500 dentists opted out of the NHS just three months after the new contract was introduced in 2006 - this represents an 8% decline in NHS dentists. The British Dental Association said that the situation was absurd.

The result is that many people here in Carshalton and Wallington are struggling to find an NHS dentist willing to take them on as a patient. I have launched a new 'Desperate for Dentists' campaign aimed at ensuring constituents get access to quality dental care.

At present the new contracts mean that dentists earn based on the number of UDAs (Units of Dental Activity) they complete in any given year. However, there is no incentive whatsoever for NHS dentists to provide, for example, oral health advice as they do not earn UDAs for such work. And yet, it seems to be common-sense that preventative care plays a key role in easing the burden on the system. Preventative care must be a long-term priority if we are to tackle poor dental hygiene.

We must however underpin a long-term preventative approach to dental care with immediate action. This can be done by abolishing the charges for dental check-ups for example, as the Liberal Democrats have pledged to do in Scotland. The fact is that not everyone requires an annual check-up. Conversely there are those who require checkups at more regular intervals. At present the Dental care system in England lacks the flexibility to deal with such a broad range of patient needs. This is why the introduction of an individually tailored dental plans for each patient would ensure patients receive the attention they require.

NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) has welcomed this approach to dental care recognising that patients vary in their needs and attitudes towards dental care.

My campaign aims to ensure changes to the system and to the contracts are made in full cooperation with Dental professionals and patient care groups. It is apparent that the way the government has imposed new contracts on dentists has only exasperated what was already a pressing issue. We must avoid a repetition of the current crisis.

I hope you will support my 'Desperate for Dentists' campaign and help improve access to NHS dental care in Carshalton and Wallington. I will be raising constituents' concerns in Parliament at the earliest opportunity and seeking urgent answers from Ministers and meeting with local dentists to hear first hand why many will not take on NHS patients.

How Can You Help?

You can add your name to Tom's petition on this website: Just click on the following link and enter you details: www.tombrake.co.uk/petitions/