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

boozercruiser

welshdent wrote: »

One of our patients is still alive today because they came in with a swollen parotid gland that didnt look right. Immediate referral off and it turned out to be lymphoma. On the flip side others have come in having delayed and delayed ... eventual referral was too late

Blimey...it just goes to show that in the extreme you never can be too carefull :eek:

boozercruiser

Amended to be posted later.

brook2jack

In the last six months we've seen several cancers , diabetes, osteonecrosis, melanoma, skin cancer unfortunately not all of those people are still around today because some if them only came to see us when it was too late.

A dentist makes a clinical , informed choice about when to call someone in for a check up.

Someone who has recieved fillings, extraction and treatment for gum disease and then doesn't follow the dentists advice re check up is either not making an informed choice or is putting saving a check up fee in front of protecting their health. A dentist will then record in their notes that you are not complying with their advice to cover themselves medicolegally since you cannot claim your gum problems are not being prevented as you are not following advice re check ups!

boozercruiser

brook2jack wrote: »

In the last six months we've seen several cancers , diabetes, osteonecrosis, melanoma, skin cancer unfortunately not all of those people are still around today because some if them only came to see us when it was too late.

A dentist makes a clinical , informed choice about when to call someone in for a check up.

Someone who has recieved fillings, extraction and treatment for gum disease and then doesn't follow the dentists advice re check up is either not making an informed choice or is putting saving a check up fee in front of protecting their health. A dentist will then record in their notes that you are not complying with their advice to cover themselves medicolegally since you cannot claim your gum problems are not being prevented as you are not following advice re check ups!

Yes I can uderstand that. Now then...if the Dentist where to say something like "Now then Mr. Thain...you have gum disease and you really should come back and see me in 3/6 or whatever months so I can keep an eye on it and give you the required treatment"

(as per 2006 regulations and contract).

Then I could understand that and I would be a fool not to comply even coping! with the relevant NHS payment at the time.

However...that is not the way it is happening. I get down to reception and they say "O.K. would you like to book for six months time"? with absolutely no explaination as to why.:(

Please remember that we are talking about a Dentist here who is trying to fob me off to the Hygienist instead of seriously treating my gum disease. Not even offering to scale and polish under these circumstances is a pretty poor show to my way of thinking.

brook2jack

Leaving gum disease out just the fact you have had fillings and an extraction means you should not be left too long. The dentist writes on your notes or computer when you have to come in. The fact is you are routinely ignoring that advice and you have recently had a few fillings etc.

If you are serious about maintaining dental health you follow advice that is given to you, not just the bits that suit your pocket. On the one hand you are writing a letter to confirm you will get treatment for problems you might have in the future but on the other hand you are ignoring advice to have a check up that may stop you needing the treatment in the first place. If you floss, use tepe brushes daily you will not get a tartar build up. If you are careful about diet ,etc you will not need fillings. A 6 month check up will spot decay before it needs filling and spot where you are not cleaning effectively so you won't need a scale and polish.

Alternatively you can save yourself £12 because you value that more than your oral health.

boozercruiser

brook2jack wrote: »

Leaving gum disease out just the fact you have had fillings and an extraction means you should not be left too long. The dentist writes on your notes or computer when you have to come in. The fact is you are routinely ignoring that advice and you have recently had a few fillings etc.

If you are serious about maintaining dental health you follow advice that is given to you, not just the bits that suit your pocket. On the one hand you are writing a letter to confirm you will get treatment for problems you might have in the future but on the other hand you are ignoring advice to have a check up that may stop you needing the treatment in the first place. If you floss, use tepe brushes daily you will not get a tartar build up. If you are careful about diet ,etc you will not need fillings. A 6 month check up will spot decay before it needs filling and spot where you are not cleaning effectively so you won't need a scale and polish.

Alternatively you can save yourself £12 because you value that more than your oral health.

Everything that you say here is obviously good advice......except.........

"Alternatively you can save yourself £12 because you value that more than your oral health.

If that is meant personnal to me then I reject it as a silly statement which I don't subscribe to.

londondent

Its amazing the amount of tosh newspapers come out with when writing about dentists, dont know where they get their figures from.
I'd like to think i know more than 50 dentists, not one of whom are taking home more than the prime-minister (dont think we get a second home allowance or expenses either...?).

as to the recall regime, i think only about 10% of my patients are stable enough to be seen every 12-24 months, but of those, half probably want to be seen evry 6 months, if only to see the hygienist.

boozercruiser

"half probably want to be seen evry 6 months, if only to see the hygienist".

Oh! really? Nice touch that! LOL.

brook2jack

Yes its amazing. Some people actually appreciate the work a hygienist does. Some people want to be seen regularly either to treat disease , prevent disease or simply because they like the cosmetic look and feel of teeth after they have visited the hygienist. They might equally lol at someone who ignores their dentists advice and only attends once a year.

jugglebug

boozercruiser wrote: »

"half probably want to be seen evry 6 months, if only to see the hygienist".

Oh! really? Nice touch that! LOL.

BC, there is a company called smilepod set up in covent garden doing drop in scale and polishes. Admittedly targetted at the cosmetic cleaning market.
Their cheapest 15 minute clean is 35 quid with some treatments going for well over £100
google em, they have been going for some time so there is the demand for this sort of treatment. I wouldnt be surprised if they had many customers who go far more often than 6 months.
They actually only use dentists as otherwise they would need referrals to operate, couldnt imagine working there myself though to be honest.