Private Dentist Opens Doors To 'Unregistered' Emergency Patients With No Charge
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- Published: Wednesday, 01 February 2023 07:57
- Written by Guy Tuggle
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The owner of a well-established private dental practice in the Hertfordshire town of Ware has taken to Facebook to promote his willingness to help people in terrible pain who are unable to access an NHS dentist.
Patients approaching the practice in response are seen where time and triage permits without charge. The regular examination fee is £59.40 according to the practice website.
Dr Jeremy Hill, whose ‘boutique’ Ware Centre of Dental Excellence is located in the town’s Tudor Square, made local headlines soon after it opened in 2002 when paparazzi photographed the Beckhams walking through its doors.
A recognised ‘destination practice’ for celebrities, who cannot be named for reasons of confidentiality, Hill’s CV also includes the provision of complimentary ’Zoom’ tooth whitening ‘on site’ in the X Factor house to the show’s contestants 2010 to 2017.
But now, Dr Hill has taken to helping callers who are desperate for help. On the practice Facebook posts he writes “For more than 30 years, I have been working as a dentist in and around Ware In Hertfordshire.
During this time, dentistry has been pretty good to me, enabling me to live a comfortable lifestyle with my wonderful family, plus build a successful small business that hopefully will continue to employ local people for many years to come”.
Using words that will resonate with every practice in the land Dr Hill says “Over the last couple of years, our practice has been contacted by more and more people who are suffering from (sometimes extreme) dental pain but are unable to find an NHS dentist.
Many of these cannot afford private treatment that is not subsidised by the government. Also, in the press and on TV, there are reports of people having to resort to try treating themselves as they are in so much pain”.
Dr Hill, who does not have a performer number continues “This is no way for a civilised country to treat people, thus whilst I’m personally not allowed to do any NHS dentistry, what I would like to do is at least try to help people in real trouble. I would like to offer anyone with dental pain, a completely free of charge appointment just to try and get something basic done to tide them over until they can find an NHS dentist”.
The Facebook post suggests treatment might include x-rays, dressings, temporary fillings or simple extractions. ”Obviously I run a very busy practice and appointments will have to be limited, but I will aim to see anyone in real trouble…..if you are in genuine need of urgent dental care, please contact us at the practice and we’ll see what we can do” the post concludes.
Ware Centre of Dental Excellence started using Facebook to advertise its pro bono publico offer last October.
GDPUK has spoken with Dr Hill about the initiative and subsequent integration of patients into its daily schedules and this interview appears below.
Dr Jeremy Hill owns a rather snazzy four surgery boutique practice that’s mainly frequented by Hertfordshire’s better off clients plus a smattering of celebrities. According to its website, the practice smells of freshly baked bread and arriving patients can relax with freshly roasted coffee...
With NHS dentistry beset by an access crisis, last October the practice took to Facebook to offer free-of-charge appointments to local residents suffering with dental pain and who were unable to access NHS care or unable to afford private fees. GDPUK’s Guy Tuggle spoke to the clinician behind the pro-bono publico posts…
Jeremy, tell us a bit about Ware Centre of Dental Excellence.
I’ve been running the practice for over thirty years. We’ve always been a private practice. Prior to that I had done three years working as an NHS dentist but I wanted to be my own boss. I started off with what would now be called a ‘squat practice’ – it was basically a jumped up shed - in a nearby village and moved to Ware in 2002. I owe the paparazzi a big thanks for photographing and printing Victoria Beckham paying us a visit soon after we opened. You can’t buy that kind of coverage!
A visitor doesn’t need to spend long surfing your website to see that you’re big on implants and all the advanced and, if I may say so, lucrative cosmetic procedures which begs the question, why are you ‘advertising’ to see emergencies for free?
Like I say on my ‘Sponsored’ Facebook post dentistry’s been good to me and I want to put something back. If someone phones in pain we won’t turn them away. Providing we’ve got a space we will try to see them that day. And in most cases we don’t charge them, although some insist on paying something.
Look, the NHS is failing people. We have folk phoning up who haven’t slept all night and have endured excruciating pain for three days. It’s no exaggeration to say some are in tears. They’ve phoned round dozens of practices only to be turned away.
One local practice won’t see NHS patients, despite them being in pain, because they haven’t been for a check-up for over two years or whatever. It’s just wrong; half the time these patients aren’t aware of any duty to attend regularly, nobody ever told them. They believe they’re registered in the same way as they are at their Drs.
Given the paucity of NHS practices you must be inundated with desperate callers?
No, we are not. Many won’t call us because we are a private practice. Others, many others, think there must be a catch like they will be seen free but will then be asked to join the practice. No. The numbers calling are surprisingly modest.
So how many ‘unregistered emergencies’ do you see each day? And what do they typically present with?
We see one or two a day, shared between three dentists; it’s not a big deal. I’d say 90% of the patients we see have perio-related conditions that require little more than a twenty minutes review and extraction. It’s the next step up form DIY dentistry really. Only once has an extraction gone surgical, We also see a few broken teeth and a little decay.
What age and demographic would you say most callers are?
Not many children thankfully, which I’m pleased about. The vast majority of patients we see are aged 40 – 60 and are predominantly what you might call ‘less advantaged’. As I said before, many thought they had a dentist but haven’t seen one since before Covid and now have been taken off practice lists. We see others who have not been near a dentist or had an x-ray for twenty years.
Where do you slot these patients in? Emergencies can be so disruptive of a smooth running diary. How long do you allow them?
Our practice is busy so we can only slot people in where time permits and this is made clear from the start. No guarantees.
Most of my work these days, however, is implants and I invariably allow more time for these than they actually take. So I’ve often got an hour or two of slack time in the day where I can slot someone in, be they my patients or desperate emergency callers. Plus, of course, there are always spaces created by cancellations which we can be put to this use.
An emergency appointment is often only the beginning of a journey to resolve a problem. How do you address this with patients and manage their expectations?
We make it clear to patients that we are offering to get them out of trouble, out of pain. Patients are so grateful they don’t expect us to follow through with any further treatment or appointments. They know they will need to find an NHS dentist, and that it won’t be easy.
On two occasions, I think, I have extirpated. Antibiotics are seldom the solution. In these situations, patients know they will need to find another dental practice to complete the process.
So patients you’ve helped don’t beat a path back to your door?
No. Unless, of course they are so wowed by the help we’ve given they look to join as a fee paying patient.
Oral cancers are very topical and are on the rise. Your pro bono work could save lives?
Well yes, and of course oral cancers are linked to smoking and alcohol. Fortunately, we haven’t picked up any mouth cancers yet.
How do you feel about the fact that in 2023, in the sixth richest country in the world, you are offering this kind of work?
It’s crazy isn’t it! My personal feeling is that there is just not enough money to finance NHS dentistry so what we need is a set up where there is very good set up for emergencies. Now, orthodontists aren’t going to like this, but so many children are having ortho at a time when people are having to take their teeth own teeth out because they can’t access a dentist. In the absence of more funding, there needs to be a big debate about what is and what is not possible with the budget and workforce available.
Finally, any advice to dentists tempted to follow your example?
Do it! From my experience it will not inundate you with thousands of patients or cost you thousands of pounds. It will use up a little bit of time but the gratitude you will receive outweighs any financial reward.
Jeremy, thank you for talking to GDPUK.
Dr Jeremy Hill BDS 1990 Fellow International Congress of Oral Implantologists 2001 (Prosethics and Surgical) British Dental Association Association of Dental Implantology American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry European Association for Osseointegration Invisalign Certification 2003 Advanced Botox Certification 2004 Dermal Filller 2004
Private Dentist Opens Doors To Unregistered
Surely a great idea to give to those in need and get them out of pain. Some may like what they see and decide to come back if circumstances allow.It's a win/win situation and I hope others will provide similar.
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