WE ARE NOW TAKING NHS PATIENTS

Dear Patient,

We are excited to announce important changes about how NHS dental treatment is provided in Scotland.

From November 1^st 2023 NHS dentistry will change to allow dentists to provide more preventative care and these are changes that DB dentalcare will embrace.

We have been vocal about the changes that were happening within dentistry for the past 3 years, and especially with relation to the limitations of the old NHS contract.

Whilst this new NHS contract still has its flaws, it allows dentists to be paid for preventative advice and allows more comprehensive treatment of gum disease. This is something that was not available before and fits in with our practice message of ‘Prevention being better than cure’.

It also allows dentists to employ digital dentistry which is something that we use routinely in all our private patients for the monitoring of tooth wear and gum recession, and to show patients exactly what is going on in their mouths. The use of digital scanners to improve our patient experience is something that has been actively encouraged by the Health Secretary in the Scottish Parliament.

The frequency of NHS examination appointments will now be based on an individual’s risk of dental disease and WILL NOT be every 6 months.

Patients will be seen every 12, 18, or 24 months for check ups where they will receive an examination, routine X-Rays, a digital intra oral scan, and gum measurements.

For NHS patients who pay for their treatment, these changes will see charges increasing substantially with patients being expected to pay between approximately 50 and 80 pounds per course of treatment for assessment and advice alone.

The costs of all treatments have also increased considerably.

Our aim at DB Dentalcare is to prevent dental disease and our focus is not on providing patients with expensive treatments but to avoid treatments. Maintaining oral health is our priority and we believe that by seeing our patients more frequently than the NHS now allows that we can achieve this better. More regular appointments we believe keeps patients motivated towards their dental health and helps with any dental anxieties.

We will continue to promote our dental membership plan that allows us to see our patients more frequently and spreads the costs. We believe that many patients will see the benefits of joining our plan, however we want to reassure everyone that we will continue to see and treat patients on the NHS and we congratulate the government on positive changes to what is now available for our registered patients.

Although we are still not accepting new adult NHS patients we would be happy to discuss our dental plan with anyone who is looking for a dentist and would be impacted by these increased charges.

We look forward to seeing you.

Kind Regards

Stuart McGrow

If you are interested in registering with us or would like further information please feel free to contact us.

Kind Regards

Stuart McGrow

Telephone: 0141 952 1513

Mobile: 07783349063

Email: smile@dbdentalcare.com