4 ms·
Dentistry's an odd one. In some parts of the country it certainly used to be essentially impossible to get an NHS dentist, and in others it's easy. There are mu
by pmyteh 9y ago
Dentistry's an odd one. In some parts of the country it certainly used to be essentially impossible to get an NHS dentist, and in others it's easy. There are multiple dental surgeries accepting new NHS patients in Oxford, for example, which is by no means a cheap place to operate.
Although NHS dental treatment isn't generally free for adults, it is pretty cheap. I've been lucky enough to find an NHS surgery everywhere I've lived and the standard of care has been generally excellent.
- dazc 9y agoI have heard similar elsewhere, NHS dentistry used to be pretty awful when I was a kid - many people developed phobias that they never got over with obvious consequences. Maybe the growth of private clinics has had a positive effect on standards overall, though I know a lot of NHS dentists do a bit of both.
- pmyteh 9y agoI'm told by my dad that his (private) dentist as a kid also used to be awful; whereas my (NHS) dentist was great. Though I'm told that surgery went downhill when our dentist retired. Very hard to separate out what's going on. And I think essentially all NHS dentists do private work as well these days. The one bit of private work I've had done was a rear filling: standard amalgam was covered on the NHS tariff, but a cosmetic 'upgrade' to a white composite one was private and at cost.
- moonbug22 9y agoAs a general principle, be wary of any practitioner who doesn't also do NHS work. The CPD and peer-review keep them on the straight and narrow.
- dazc 9y agoI'm not sure about this since my dentist is a dental surgeon way above the grade of an average practitioner. May be good advice in general but I don't think that not being part of the NHS should be seen as something negative.