People who have struggled to find an NHS dentist are being urged to speak out.
Patients’ group Kirklees Healthwatch is appealing for people to come forward to highlight problems with NHS dental care.
Director Rory Deighton said he disputed NHS England’s view that there wasn’t a problem with NHS dental care in Kirklees.
He said: “We’ve talked a lot about access to NHS Dentistry in our first two years; from the 10 year old girl who has never seen a dentist to the older man who could not get a new set of dentures made.
“We’ve heard stories about fair access to NHS dentists wherever we’ve been.
“We think there’s a chunk of people can’t find an NHS dentist when they need one.
“There’s issues with access but there’s also real issues with information – it can be really hard to find out where to go and which dentists are taking NHS patients.
“In this day and age you should be able to log on to the internet or pick up the phone and find out easily.
“We’ve struggled to convince NHS England in Leeds that there is a problem - but now patients have a real opportunity to do so.
“For the next four weeks, a survey by Public Health England will ask patients what their experiences of NHS oral health services, including dentists, in Yorkshire is like.
“It’s a really powerful opportunity for patients to say, ‘Actually, this is what happened to me, and my mum, and my neighbour’. “Healthwatch organisations across West Yorkshire are joining together to ask patients their views. Its a really important document because it will help the NHS decide on its priorities in the future.”
The Examiner highlighted the difficulty in finding a dentist in a special feature in early January.
It revealed NHS spending on dentistry in parts of Dewsbury was a tiny fraction of spending in leafy Greenhead in Huddersfield.
To put forward your views in the survey go to www.surveymonkey.com/s/DMJZFSD or visit www.healthwatchkirklees.co.uk for more information.
