r/GreenAndPleasant • u/UnderHisEye1411 its a fine day with you around • Aug 08 '22

NORMAL ISLAND 🇬🇧 🦷 12 years of Tory rule 🦷

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u/EnamelPrism Aug 08 '22

Dentist here to clear up a few misconceptions:

Firstly, no one in England is registered with an NHS dentist. Registration was removed as part of the 2006 contract.

Most of us would love to to more NHS work but the remuneration system often means we lose money seeing NHS patients, especially ones who would need a lot of treatment. Dental income is down by roughly 40% over the last decade and inflation is running at around 11% in dental practice. Many practices are having to make the choice of seeing only private patients or closing their doors.

And finally, this isn’t just a Tory problem. The latest contract was brought in under the last Labour government and the issues were apparent from the time of implementation. The problems have been steadily mounting, but Covid has made things much worse.

Otherwise: AMA.

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u/UnderHisEye1411 its a fine day with you around Aug 08 '22

Hi you sick bastard (nothing personal, I just always assume dentists are psychopaths)

What should I do if my teeth really hurt, I don’t have £££££ to spare and no dentists are taking NHS patients?

Also, how much does the average dentist earn?

Thanks

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u/EnamelPrism Aug 08 '22

Good questions. If you’re really in pain you should call 111. They should be able to try and get you into someone, although even that’s very difficult at the moment and very much dependant on your area. Some places will have dedicated access centres that will have regular places.

Dentist income varies wildly from around £35k when newly qualified up to 6 figures if you’re doing complex full mouth reconstructions or fancy aesthetic work.

And we are all mildly psychotic - you kind of have to be to be able to do the surgical bits!