Struggle to access a NHS dentist in Bradford revealed

The T&A found that two of these were accepting new NHS patients of any age, and the remaining one was only open to children.

It means there are large sections of the district where there appear to be no dental practices currently open to patients without a referral.

According to the NHS Find a Dentist service, of the 55 practices in the Bradford district, 21 were not accepting new patients at all, nine were only taking NHS patients referred by another dentist, and the remaining 22 had not provided the NHS with an update on its situation recently.

The T&A understand that these referrals can only usually be made when a patient is already registered with a dentist.

People in Bradford have spoken of their struggles to find an NHS dentist. (Image: PA)

The three dentists listed as accepting new NHS patients as of August 9, are Allerton Dental Practice in Allerton, Greengates Dental Practice in Greengates, and Dental Surgery in Thornton (children aged 17 or under only).

It means only 5.5 per cent of all the dentists in the district are taking on new NHS patients.

Dozens of readers have responded on social media detailing their struggles at getting access to an NHS dentist locally.

Commenting on the T&A’s Facebook post, Cathie King said: “Took me 8 years to get in a NHS dentist!!! Absolutely disgusting, people can't get in a NHS dentist. Ring round a few you’ll soon see there's waiting lists up to 2-3 years at most!”

Jackie Morrow said: “There are no NHS dentists anymore, been trying for over a year as I need 5 teeth out. Not in pain so have to wait.”

Darren Palmer added: “Isn't everyone?? It's utterly disgusting that this situation is allowed to flourish. Your teeth are as much a vital part of your body as your arms or heart or anything else and should be covered by the NHS.”

Others said they were forced to look into going private in order to access the dental treatment needed.

Michèle Louise posted: “I was willing to go private, but they said I had to pay £1500+ on treatment to get them into an OK condition before they'd add me to a dental payment plan.”

While Lucy Jade commented: “I got kicked off my dentist list during covid because I couldn't go to an appointment because I had covid! I’ve suffered for years with my teeth - been in hospital multiple times because of it too. Caused me no end of problems mentally and physically. I work and STILL can't afford to go private to get them fixed. The waiting lists are shocking.”

In contrast, Michelle Schofield detailed her positive experience, saying: “I had to ring 111 for an emergency dentist last week. I got an appointment the next morning and the treatment only cost me £25.80. The only downside was I had to travel to Holmfirth because the Bradford district had no appointments.”

The number of dentists accepting NHS dentists in Bradford is revealed (Image: Canva)

In March the T&A reported how the latest figures had revealed hundreds of Bradford children had needed to have rotting teeth removed last year.

The data from the Government’s Office for Health Improvement and Disparities showed a significant increase in hospitals removing under-19-year-olds' decaying teeth across England following the coronavirus pandemic.

The OHID figures show 395 children aged 19 or younger in Bradford had at least one tooth removed in hospital due to decay in the 12 months to March 2022 – up from around 95 the year before but down from 1,080 in 2019-20, before the pandemic.

It meant around 255 in every 100,000 children underwent a tooth extraction for decay last year.

A total of 495 extractions were undertaken in Bradford, meaning decay accounted for 80 per cent of all procedures.

Tooth decay is the most common reason for hospital admission in children aged six to 10, while the data also showed children living in the most deprived communities are 3.5 times more likely to have teeth out due to decay than those in the most affluent areas.

At the time a Department for Health and Social Care spokesperson said that the number of children nationally seen by NHS dentists had increased by 44 per cent in the last year.

They added: “We have seen an increase in hospital operations for tooth extraction for those aged 0-19 as oral healthcare services continue to recover from the pandemic."