However we are concerned that health authorities do not possess the levers they require to meet the objectives of the strategy. This should examine the limitations that impede the achievement of these objectives and, in conjunction with findings from the remuneration and workforce reviews, advise on how these limitations might be addressed. We recommend that in all these exercises the profession and the patients it serves should be fully consulted in a timely fashion. This was a very brief inquiry based on a single evidence session, but we received extensive written evidence and are quite clear that urgent action is required. We consider that dentistry has never been fully integrated into the NHS and as a result major health inequalities exist.
Unregistered patients find it hard to get any form of care.
Registered patients can lose that status without redress and often without knowing they have done so. Certain very vulnerable groups of patients, such as elderly people and those with dementia, face particular problems. We believe there should be greater clarity and honesty regarding availability of NHS treatment. Modernising NHS Dentistry aims to address immediate problems of access. There are widespread concerns that the proposals in the document merely provide a quick fix and do not go to the root of the problems.