My Dentist is going private !

BFG_2

NHS Dentistry is a joke!!!
The gov now spends less per head on dentistry than it did in 1992 (13 yrs ago!!), even without allowing for inflation!!
Dentistry was specifically excluded from the 'NHS escalator' where the spending on NHS went up dramatically in the last few years - (remember that's why we're all paying an extra 1% on National Insurance!).

Dentists are leaving the NHS by the hundreds - all because they can't provide the level of care they want to (and that you deserve).

Did you know that a dentist doesn't get paid for teaching you how to brush your teeth or look after them better!!! They only get paid when they are working on you.
They don't get paid when you miss an appointment.
If they spent an hour trying to persuade your 'nervous/phobic' child to have treament, they get paid an extra...£0.00 (nil).

Oh and isn't the NHS supposed to be 'free at the point of use' - I think they mean to say "free at the point of use, except for dentistry and opticians and pharmacists and chiropodists and ...". Not quite as good a sound bite, eh??

nik-nik_2

My dentist turned private a year or so ago, we were also asked to join his Denplan cover, we agreed as there was no where else to go locally. Once we agreed we were called in for an inspection where they graded your teeth according to the number fillings, bridges, staining etc you had, this grading then decides the amount you pay per month. If you had any work needed completing before switching to private they did it for you FOC, I'm on the cheapest DD of £9.50pcm and this includes out of hours and abroad emergencys - Even though I'm a bit peeved to be paying, I gotta admit is a better service now.

Savvy_Sue

mah_jong wrote:

SO....... do any dentists take any plan, or what? How does it work?

I think some dentists opt for one kind of plan only but others are more flexible. However I don't know for sure, but there are a few threads on dentistry on the health board and if you ask over there a couple of very friendly dentists open wide from time to time and spill the beans as it were.

biblejohn

Mine too has just decided to go private and wants everyone to pay his 20quid a month plan.... dunno what to do yet as no other nhs places locally, but dont fancy 20quid a month when i never have any problems. Will shop around i think!

hilstep2000

Mine went private last year. I am a single mum on Tax Credits, and was exempt from charges, I went on the web of my local health authority, put in dentists, and up came a list of all the loacl ones, who were private and NHS. It also told me who had spaces, so a phone call later we were registered with a new NHS dentist. I'v since had a gold crown done, the new dentist took out a huge filling that my old one had put in, and replaced it! Didn't cost me a penny!
So see if you can get another NHS one!

Hereford_Wolf

Yes - I've done the website thing. No NHS dentists available in my area at the moment. Have filled in the form and am now on the waiting list. We will see..... !

waterbaby

I was with an NHS dentist in my home town from when I was born til when I left home at 22. I have had to keep the same dentist, because there isn't a hope in hell of getting an NHS dentist where I live.

I go when I visit my mum, and she thinks its hilarious to tell everyone that I have travelled 300 miles just to come to the dentist.

Apparently he was thinking last year of going private, so I don't know what he's done. He explained to me that the NHS scheme was good, but the government has 'squeezed and squeezed' and now they've squeezed too far.

What are these 'plans', are they like insurance policies for big jobs, or do they cover all the work you need done. What if you don't take them? There is absolutely no way i am paying £20 a month unless my life depends on it.

mah_jong

These plans cover all the work done by the dentist...check ups,x-rays, fillings,extractions they also cover you when away on holiday etc.

However they don't cover any lab work..... crowns/plates/ bridges. That is over and above.

The cost is dependant on how good your teeth are.... how many fillings/ crowns/dentures etc. I have lots of fillings and two crowns hence an expensive set of teeth !! But with still 28 teeth years of work ahead. But prices start of much less than that.

My pal only has a few teeth and dentures. As she cannot find a NHS dentist, she pays an annual fee to be on a dentists list and then pays for treatment/check ups.

The_Biff

If your dentist plans to go private, a fair question would be to ask if he/she is going to refund his training costs. Remember we all pay for them to learn, even now.

waterbaby

mah_jong wrote:

These plans cover all the work done by the dentist...check ups,x-rays, fillings,extractions they also cover you when away on holiday etc.

So if I have good teeth (which I do), I am subsidising those with bad teeth. Liking it!

How often are you allowed to go for check ups and stuff (ie when you aren't aware of any problems). If I could have them polished etc every month then I might be getting my moneys worth. If I attended every 2 years for a check up, as my dentist says is right for me, then I would be paying perhaps £500 for a check up. Bargain. :mad:

I may need other treatment of course, but going on past experience I would certainly not get my moneys worth.