Dentist

elsien

I had an extraction some years ago which needed to be under sedation so couldn’t be done at my Nhs dentist Surgery. I was referred to the local hospital, not a specialist dental Hospital. There may still be a wait for that, but that’s why I suggested you go back to clarify exactly what the complexity is and any other alternative routes.

Worried_fool

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82170002#Comment_82170002

Yes, the dental system really is that broken.

Going abroad within Europe really is that much cheaper, unless your time off work would be enormously costly. You would have to compare costs in your own particular situation.

Dustyevsky

Not all NHS dentists are 'awful' just because some people have poor experiences with them.

When my NHS dentist couldn't complete a root canal treatment because her equipment wasn't up to the job, she was in tears with frustration. However, she did offer extraction as a solution, unlike the OP's dentist.

The other option was to accept the services of a private dentist who specialised, so I took it. He did the work, taking 30 minutes or so. The NHS dentist then completed a permanent fix. I was warned throughout the treatment had quite a high failure rate, but it was successful. At today's prices it would have cost about £1300.

So, going private didn't cost 'thousands.' I know it was still more than many could afford, and there was a degree of risk, but it wasn't as disruptive as going to Turkey! I'd say shop around. My dentist gave me alternatives, and I chose the nearest surgery that could do what she couldn't.

Toothsmith

I'm still around, but I have not had an NHS contract for over 20 years now and I really cannot speak with any authority on how it works any more.

I do know that NHS specialists are virtually non existant, and they myth that a 'dental hospital' will treat complex things on the NHS is just that. What you can have, and can't have on the NHS I have also lost track of with the new prioritisation of emergency treatment at the expense of anything vaguely to do with continuing care.

Where NHS and private care exist within the same practice you get exactly the sort of distrust that is evident in some of the posts above, which is why I'm forever grateful I turned my back on it completely in 2006 when the current contract started. I now have a very simple relationship with my patients - many of who have been seeing me for 30+ years.