Over 90% of people in Scotland registered with dentist
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- Published: Thursday, 25 August 2016 07:46
- Written by News Editor
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Data issued by the Scottish Government show that 4.9 million (91%) of the Scottish population are registered with an NHS dentist. Children are more likely to be registered with an NHS dentist than adults (94% compared to 90%) and this is true across all deprivation areas. But at March 2016, 3.5 million (72%) of those registered had seen an NHS dentist within the last two years.
The British Dental Association Scotland has expressed concern that the ‘record breaking’ increases in dental registration rates in Scotland are concealing a long term decline in patient participation. Although more than 9 out of 10 people are now registered with a dentist, only 72% of those currently registered in March 2016 have seen an NHS dentist within the last two years.
Participation rates have been in long term decline since changes to registration rules in 2007, when 99% of the 2.5 million patients who were registered had contact with their dentist. Rates have fallen year on year from 2007 to 2016, dropping from 98.6% to 69% among adults, and from 99.9% to 89% among children.
The figures also showed that for the first time there is no difference in registration rates between children living in the most and least deprived areas - but rates of participation continue to vary sharply between communities.
The BDA has called for the Scottish government to do more to boost participation among adults in deprived areas – particularly to halt the rise of oral cancer. Oral cancer incidence in Scotland among men and women is currently at 16.8 per 100,000, compared with 12.4 in England and 11.9 in Northern Ireland, and cases are clustered in areas of high deprivation.
Robert Donald, Chair of the BDA's Scottish Dental Practice Committee said: “These record breaking registration rates mask a long term decline in participation among patients. The reality is while many people in deprived communities are getting on the books, they are not making it to the dentist’s chair. We know Scotland has a lot to be proud of when it comes to fighting decay, particularly the big gains we’ve seen through ChildSmile. Now we need real effort from government to ensure adults are seeking the regular care they need. Lifetime registration is good for generating positive statistics, but that means very little if the patients in most need are not seeking treatment. Boosting attendance among adults would do wonders for Scotland’s oral health, particularly on oral cancer where early detection is key.”
No surprise
Not really sure if the headline match the exact story.Yes 90% may be registered but since 2007/8 when SNP gained power, they changed registration do that it was no longer for a fixed term but indefinite, although the dentist does not continue to get paid after a certain length of time.
So a more correct headline would be 90% of people have been to an NHS dentist in the last 10 years.
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