Promises, Promises - Sunak, Derbyshire And NHS Dental Access
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- Published: Wednesday, 02 November 2022 08:01
- Written by Guy Tuggle
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Prime Minister Rishi Sunak promised on a televised debate during the initial, and protracted, round of Tory Party leadership hustings, to knuckle down on NHS dental access reform “on day one”.
Well, it didn’t quite work out like that. Arguably there were a few tasks that took priority. Shaking hands with the King, accepting his invitation to form a government, writing those “Letters Of Last Resort” to the Commanders of Britain’s four ballistic missile submarines, plus assembling a cabinet in his own mould.
Collectively, these were valid reasons for making the dental profession, and millions of patients, wait just one extra day.
Out went Therese Coffey, and in came Stephen ‘Steve’ Barclay, as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with MP Will Quince (CON, Colchester) announced as the latest ministerial inheritor of the dental chalice.
But if Mr Sunak thought it was safe to park, however temporarily, his pledge to tackle NHS dentistry, the chicken came home if not to roost but at least to squawk, during his first PMQ’s on Wednesday 26th October.
South Derbyshire MP Heather Wheeler (CON) asked if there were plans for more Drs and dentists to work in the UK.
Earlier this year, Derby made the news when NHS representatives cancelled, at the last minute, a meeting convened with the city’s councillors to discuss complaints and toxic correspondence received from angry residents unable to access an NHS dentist in a city that is an access blackspot.
Mr Sunak replied that there were indeed plans in place which, according to the report in Derbyshire Live ‘could pave the way for more dentists from abroad to work in UK cities and towns’.
Claiming that there were 3,500 more Drs and 9000 more nurses working in the UK than a year ago the Prime Minister said “we are working to simplify the registration for dentists in particular that are not trained to practise here and that is how we will help deliver a long-term plan for the NHS and ensure that everyone can get the care they need”.
How Mr Sunak’s words will resonate with the profession and the millions of patients unable to access NHS dental services remains to be seen, although few will be holding their breath.
Rose-Marie Lynch from NHS England and NHS Improvement Midlands recently told Derby Council “There are enough dentists in the UK, however, not all dentists want to stay in the NHS so that’s the challenge we have”.
At least no mention was made of the extra £50M funding made available for 350,000 additional appointments .
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