I was shocked and more than a little annoyed to discover an article in the Sunday Express recently that claimed, “Now we pull out our own teeth: Boom in DIY dental kits as patients cannot afford NHS fees”. Of course it doesn’t take too much in the way of imagination to guess what follows next. As you would expect, the writer embarks on a meandering and incoherent tirade claiming that, “Unable to afford soaring charges, almost a fifth of people have all but given up going to their dentist”.
But wait a minute; I thought this article was supposed to be about the cost of NHS dentistry? We are only one line in and already the writer has confused the issue. The writer then goes on to claim, “Up to a third of adults no longer have an NHS dentist, according to the latest figures”. But of course, the writer doesn’t say where these figures come from – nor does she explain what she means by the words “no longer”. Are we to take it that everyone is supposed to have an NHS dentist in the current system? Do these people really “no longer” have dentists down to cost and cost alone?
I could go on here, but I am sure readers get a sense of the type of article the Sunday Express has published here. It is but yet another example of appalling, lazy journalism that continues to fill our national media with stories that mislead patients and paint our profession in a negative light. Not only that, but it’s so confusing is it any wonder patients don’t understand how the NHS dental system works?
Of course the whole issue that the article raises is an emotive one, but I think as a profession we need to ask ourselves just why these patients are doing these things in the first place.
As you would expect, the author of the article certainly doesn’t seem to know quite why these patients are pulling out their own teeth. One moment it’s the greedy dentists, the next moment it’s the poor patients, and then it’s the broken NHS. Though the author seems to level blame at just about anything or anyone who comes to mind, she singularly fails to address the three key points: accessibility, education and expectations.
A major problem we all face in our day-to-day work as dental professionals is fighting against the all too common trend of patients not placing enough value in dentistry, and not concerning themselves with their oral health until it gets too late. Is it any wonder then that patients feel aggrieved when they find themselves in pain and can’t receive treatment on account of the fact they aren’t registered? One also has to wonder why, after all these years, has there been no concerted effort to educate and inform patients on a national scale about how NHS dentistry works!
I think what concerns me more than anything about this “DIY dental kits” story is that it’s not an isolated case – these stories seem to crop up almost every week! It worries me the impact these stories are having on our patients. It’s no wonder people are pulling out their own teeth if the papers regularly print horror stories about greedy dentists who do more harm than good.
I wonder do these people have nothing better to write?
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Dr Michael Sultan BDS MSc DFO FICD is a Specialist in Endodontics and the Clinical Director of EndoCare. Michael qualified at Bristol University in 1986. He worked as a general dental practitioner for 5 years before commencing specialist studies at Guy’s hospital, London. He completed his MSc in Endodontics in 1993 and worked as an in-house Endodontist in various practices before setting up in Harley St, London in 2000. He was admitted onto the specialist register in Endodontics in 1999 and has lectured extensively to postgraduate dental groups as well as lecturing on Endodontic courses at Eastman CPD, University of London. He has been involved with numerous dental groups and has been chairman of the Alpha Omega dental fraternity. In 2008 he became clinical director of EndoCare, a group of specialist practices.