NHS ‘risking two-tier dental system’

One political party has warned against the dangers of the current NHS dental system, claiming that it is prompting increasing numbers of health professionals to turn their back on it.

The 2006 dental contract, which sees dentists paid for a fixed-contract value for the amount of work they do each year, means that they are free to choose whether they provide NHS or private treatment, or a combination of these.

However, Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb stated that this is leading to problems.

“There is a danger that while not all the NHS dentists left are second rate by any means, we could end up with a two-tier profession,” the Telegraph quotes him as saying.

Meanwhile, a new £7.6 million dental treatment and training centre in Perth, Scotland, is set to open in summer 2010 and will feature 20 surgeries, a clinical skills training room, laboratory and decontamination unit and facilities for 7,000 patients.