Exodus of NHS Dentists in Northern Ireland Accelerates, BDA Warns

UK: In a recent article published on the BBC News website, the British Dental Association (BDA) has sounded the alarm on the rapidly deteriorating state of NHS dentistry in Northern Ireland. The report, authored by the BBC’s dental correspondent, highlights the growing crisis and the urgent need for action.

Waiting List to Leave NHS Dentistry

The article reveals a startling development in the dental sector: there is now a waiting list for dentists seeking to leave NHS practice. This unprecedented situation was brought to light during a Stormont health committee meeting, where Ciara Gallagher, a senior representative from the British Dental Association (BDA), provided evidence of the ongoing crisis.

“An exodus of dentists from the NHS in Northern Ireland is well under way,” Gallagher warned the committee. She further elaborated that NHS dental work has decreased by 30% as practices increasingly “unshackle” themselves from the National Health Service.

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Financial Pressures and Static Fees

The root cause of this “unfolding crisis,” according to the BDA, lies in the combination of rising costs and virtually static fee payments. Gallagher, who chairs the BDA’s dental practice committee, was particularly critical of the Department of Health’s approach to fee-setting.

“These fees are set by the Department of Health, who neither know, or have taken any meaningful steps to find out, the true costs to provide dental care,” she stated. The article notes her assertion that “departmental affordability trumps all other considerations, and so the downward trajectory at practice level gets cumulatively worse.”

Broken Trust and Calls for Action

The relationship between dentists and the Department of Health has reached a nadir, with the BDA representative describing a complete breakdown in trust. “Our lived experience has been one of denial, prevarication, lip-service and more recently broken promises,” Gallagher told the committee.

In response to the crisis, the BDA is urging the Department of Health to develop a comprehensive plan. They have pointed to the Scottish government’s intervention as a model, crediting it with saving their dentistry sector from collapse.

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The Silent Exodus

Unlike other healthcare professionals, the article points out that dentists do not typically engage in strike action. Instead, as Gallagher explained, they “leave the profession and do not return.” This silent exodus is exacerbated by the fact that most dental practices are small businesses with no control over their fees and limited government support.

The BBC report concludes by underscoring the urgency of the situation. With waiting lists growing not just for patients but for dentists looking to exit the NHS, the future of public dental care in Northern Ireland hangs in the balance.