Asked for Dental NHS Scale and Polish.Told "Go to Hygienist at £25 extra"

boozercruiser

I just did a check with Denticare as to how much a normal visit to the Hygenist is......I was told that right now it's.... £25....(so at least it didn't change since my first post here....

BUT..... from 1st December 2010 (This Wednesday) it will be £28.:eek:

So what do YOU pay then? Particularly if you pay more than that, a mention here would be appreciated.

Don't frighten:eek: me though!:D

:money: TIP....request a Scale and Polish instead:D...as per NHS charges listed a couple of days ago.

welshdent

boozercruiser wrote: »

I have never come across a band 4 situation Welshdent. I mean, it doesn't seem to be included anywhere in the NHS bunf.

Can you say what cost that scenario is likely to be?

It sounds like it might be variable depending on what is going on in ones mouth!:)

A band 4 course of treatment has been there right from day 1 of the contract. Its for emergency situations and is often termed band 1 urgent and has the same charge as a standard band 1. Its on the opsi gov site that I have linked previously

welshdent

http://www.opsi.gov.uk/legislation/wales/wsi2006/20060491e.htm

Scroll to
SCHEDULE 4Regulation 4(5)


Urgent Treatment under Band 1 Charge

brook2jack

"TIP....request a Scale and Polish instead...as per NHS charges listed a couple of days ago."

BC you shouldn't be advising people on their clinical needs even on the NHS. People with severe gum problems will need further treatment on band 2 charges £39 to £45, and may possibly need to be referred onto periodontal specialists for further treatment (difficult on the NHS but possible for some problems) . People on private schemes will need to listen to their dentist and hygienist as to what is best to treat their gum problems. It is irresponsible to suggest the cheapest possible treatment without knowing the consequences , which can be serious , for someone.

BC periodontal (gum problems) are not cosmetic , they can have consequences for general health, and hygienists and periodontists (specialists in gum problems) have for many years been respected and valued members of the dental team. In eg Scandinavia you will not get any dental treatment (even fillings) until you have seen a hygienist and worked on the causes of your dental disease.



Money saving is NOT more important than looking after your health both general and dental.

brook2jack

We are private and costs for treatment from our hygienist depend on what needs doing..... from application of medication to infected pockets , to intensive treatment of gum disease costs anything from £28 to several hundred pounds depending on time needed. Our "quickest" appointment is 20 minutes (£28 ), but intensive treatment will take many visits stretching over a few months. However the most important part of the treatment is the teaching people how to control their gum disease.

If they then need further treatment such as surgery we refer to a periodontist whose charges depend on what they are doing but will be anything from a couple of hundred upwards.

Few people should need to see a hygienist regularly but unfortunately many have to because they do not brush and floss properly. the biggest moneysaving thing you can do is take your toothbrush and floss to the dentist/hygienist next time you go and check you are using them properly and have the right size tooth brush.

boozercruiser

brook2jack wrote: »

BC you shouldn't be advising people on their clinical needs even on the NHS. People with severe gum problems will need further treatment on band 2 charges £39 to £45, and may possibly need to be referred onto periodontal specialists for further treatment (difficult on the NHS but possible for some problems) . People on private schemes will need to listen to their dentist and hygienist as to what is best to treat their gum problems. It is irresponsible to suggest the cheapest possible treatment without knowing the consequences , which can be serious , for someone.

BC periodontal (gum problems) are not cosmetic , they can have consequences for general health, and hygienists and periodontists (specialists in gum problems) have for many years been respected and valued members of the dental team. In eg Scandinavia you will not get any dental treatment (even fillings) until you have seen a hygienist and worked on the causes of your dental disease.



Money saving is NOT more important than looking after your health both general and dental.

With respect, I am not intending to advise people in respect of clinical needs. What I am saying as per my start up post is that my Dentist has said that I have some gum disease and should go to the Denticare Hygenist (£25).

At least in my case, and I guess in most others a Scale and Polish will help keep the situation in check. When that was first mentioned to me 3 years ago, I requested and got the Scale and Polish. Nothing has got worse...and I still have most of my teeth.

Again with great respect, are you telling me that there are some circumstances where an individual just HAS to move OUTSIDE of the normal whatever NHS band to get something sorted out with an NHS Dentist?

In other words...the NHS Dentist just cannot (Or perhaps will not) sort it out inside the NHS Umberella?

Are you also telling me that normal NHS Dentists are not specialists in Gum problems then?

Finally, please note that I live in Wales...(United Kingdom) .not Scandinavia!:)

welshdent

BC regards being specialists in gum problems - unfortunately as with most walks of life some are better than others at certain treatments. The NHS regs assume we are all as good as each other at everything. Unfortunately that is not the case. There are indeed certain levels of care for periodontal disease that NEED specialist care. That may be surgery or interventions such as guided tissue regeneration. Personally I have never undertaken ANY periodontal surgery short of practicing crown lengthening on a pigs head ... and that wasnt a course for gum disease but for general restorative dentistry. People with advanced gum disease or non responsive conditions are ideally to be referred for specialist care. The problem is little provision is made because the DOH try and keep the costs as low as possible so the pathway of care for these cases is frequently extract. Its the same for root fillings. There is hardly any provision despite the american society of endodontics giving clear guidelines on what constitutes easy moderate and difficult cases (american or not the clinical cases are the same).
I have referred people to the local hospital for advanced care who I feel should be seen every 3 months as a minimum for advanced treatments (otherwise band 2) and it has taken them 9 months just to be LOOKED at then another 6 months to get anything involving treatment. Thats just the reality of the situation we face with the health service and dentistry. The politico bods will tell you all is rosy and you can have whatever you need but it isnt like that. My colleagues went to a course recently with such a periodontal specialist in the private sector and he wants his cases seen every 6 weeks with his hyginest for 30 minute "cleans" and then he has them in for surgery. The costs for this run to thousands to the patient. With the best will in the world there is no way that we can give this level of treatment on the health service. Discounting the experience levels of the practitioner, the NHS simply will not be able to fund this. Why spend a grand TRYING to save a tooth when you can spend £60 to have it taken out and it no longer be a problem.

welshdent

p.s. I will often have patients of mine treated privately for gum problems because it is cheaper with our hygenist than a band 2. Everyone is given the option of £39 with me or £20 with her well its would be £32 with her if they pay for check ups and £20 if over 60

brook2jack

boozercruiser wrote: »

With respect, I am not intending to advise people in respect of clinical needs. What I am saying as per my start up post is that my Dentist has said that I have some gum disease and should go to the Denticare Hygenist (£25).

At least in my case, and I guess in most others a Scale and Polish will help keep the situation in check. When that was first mentioned to me 3 years ago, I requested and got the Scale and Polish. Nothing has got worse...and I still have most of my teeth.

Are you also telling me that normal NHS Dentists are not specialists in Gum problems then?

Finally, please note that I live in Wales...(United Kingdom) .not Scandinavia!:)

Most people do not know they have gum disease. There is no pain and often few symptoms until people realise their teeth are loose. It can take many years to get to this stage. Only a dentist measuring the health signs of your gums such as pocket depths and taking x rays could tell you if in three years if your gum problems are worse.

No dentist (private or NHS) is a specialist in anything unless they have had extensive further training ,qualifications and are registered on the GDC specialist list. You may be interested to read further http://www.bsperio.org.uk/patients/ . Most people in this country will lose their teeth to gum disease not decay so it would appear a "scale and polish" will NOT sort most others . This is an American site but you may find it interesting as to what a periodontist (gum specialist ) does http://www.perio.org/consumer/procedures.htm

Finally it is a shame we don't live in Scandinavia.... The UK has terrible rates of decay and gum disease and many colleagues from abroad are shocked at how little the UK values its dental health. Wales ,incidentally, has far worse dental health problems than most of the UK so it would appear that some preventative lessons are yet to be learnt.

boozercruiser

SailorSam wrote: »

I went to the hygienist for a wash and brush up and it cost £23.
I'm on benefits and normally get dental work free but about this time last year they told me of the changes in charging, i still don't need to pay to see the dentist but from 1/1/10 you have to pay to see the hygienist.

Thank you once again for your usual informative addition to the 'debate' Welshdent:T

It sounds like a book could be written on the whole subject, whatever the point of view.

However my driver is the likes of what has just happened to 'Sailor Sam as per above.

He is on benefits for whatever reason, and some people(O.K. so there are scroungers!) really do struggle to get by on them which is why Dental services are SUPPOSED to be free.

Even for them extra (Hygenist or whatever) charges are creeping in and something really does need to be done about it.

Now if in my very little humble way I can help with this, then I will.:)

If I may 'break cover' so to speak a little then I can mention that for over 35 years of my working life I was either a Shop Steward or Works Convener. (Please don't hold it against me!)

So, if I see what I perceive to be an injustice, particularly if it is against my or others pockets then I will try and do something about it.

I do believe that this Money Saving Forum is what it is all about here anyway.

Martin Lewis is my Idol.:D

He has no truck with big business ripping off the consumer either!;)