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The most recent results of the GP patient survey shows that, in the last two years, 92% of those who tried to find NHS dental treatment were successful. This rose to 95% for those who went to a practice they had been to before. 41% of those surveyed had not tried to find an NHS dentist, of these 21% had stayed with a dentist who had converted to private and 16% preferred private treatment.
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Headline figures of the Department of Health GP Patient Survey Dental Statistics:
92% of respondents who tried to obtain an appointment within the past 2 years were successful. 8% were unsuccessful. These percentages exclude those who didn't remember the outcome.
Respondents who have tried more recently are more successful. 95% of respondents trying within the past three or six months were successful.
For 78% of adults the last appointment sought was for routine dentistry; 18% were seeking an urgent appointment and 2% didn’t remember the type of appointment.
81% of the most recent appointments sought were with the dental practice previously attended. In these cases the successful percentage was 95%.
North East SHA had the largest percentage of the adult population seeking an NHS dental appointment in the last 2 years, at 66%, whilst South Central SHA had the smallest, where 52% sought an NHS appointment. Success in getting an appointment North East SHA had the largest percentage, with 95%, compared to South Central SHA with the smallest (90%).
However 41% of respondents did not try to get an appointment with an NHS dentist in the last 2 years. The most frequent reason for not trying for an NHS dental appointment in the previous 2 years was 'I stayed with my dentist when they moved from NHS to private' which was mentioned by 21% of adults; 16% said they preferred to go to a private dentist. The next reason 'I didn’t think I could get an NHS dental appointment' was 18% of responses.
147,600 completed dental question forms were received, of 400,000 that were disturbed (response rate of 37%). Results are available at National (England), Strategic Health Authority (SHA) and Primary Care Trust (PCT) level;
59% of respondents tried to obtain an appointment with an NHS dentist in the 2 year period before March 2010.
Full Department of Health analysis is available here: http://tinyurl.com/297cttk
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