With NHS England (NHSE) set to be abolished, the British Dental Association (BDA) is leading the defence of a vital dental public function and calling for funds to be put to work on the frontline.
The BDA said it reached out to the Government when plans were to merely reduce the size of Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England central workforce by 50% percent.
But, with the recent decision to axe NHSE completely, the BDA says the risk of eroding the capacity of dental public health has magnified.
“We are now seeking assurances that the headcount of dental public health consultants will not reduce as a result of the transformation programme; to do so would significantly hinder, perhaps irreversibly, the ability of this workforce to carry out its vital role,” said a BDA spokesman.
“NHS dentistry is facing a severe crisis.
“The Government is committed to a range of policies to address this, from contract reform and urgent care provision, to supervised toothbrushing and water fluoridation schemes.
“Quite simply, improvements in oral health and reductions in inequalities cannot be achieved without a fit-for-purpose dental public health consultant workforce to drive the prevention agenda and effectively measure its success.
“This will require national dental public health strategic leadership and policy development and sufficient local dental public health consultant expertise to support local implementation of national policies.
Quite simply, improvements in oral health and reductions in inequalities cannot be achieved without a fit-for-purpose dental public health consultant workforce to drive the prevention agenda and effectively measure its success
“However, this invaluable specialty is under threat, suffering a significant decline in capacity over the last two decades, both within NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care.
“Since the transfer of the national dental public health function from Public Health England to the Department, the number of dental public health consultants in this sector has decreased from six to just two.
“Similarly, in NHS England, approximately 25% of the Whole Time Equivalent (WTE) workforce has been lost since October 2021.
Successive NHS re-organisations have fragmented the dental public health workforce and resulted in an absence of clear leadership and accountability in this area
“It is estimated that the current workforce capacity must double if it is to meet the needs of the system.
“Successive NHS re-organisations have fragmented the dental public health workforce and resulted in an absence of clear leadership and accountability in this area.
“Urgent action to remedy this is essential if we are to refocus on prevention and end the crisis facing NHS dentistry.”
The BDA is calling on NHS England and the DHSC to advocate for the safeguarding of the dental public health consultant workforce, with the headcount of dental public health consultants within NHS England at the very least maintained.
“The cuts at NHS England are unprecedented,” said Professor Robert Witton, chairman of the BDA’s Dental Public Health Committee.
“There’s no duplication of effort with dedicated dental public health professionals, who are already in very short supply.
“The Government wants to shift the focus from treatment to prevention, but putting these jobs on the line won’t achieve that goal.
“The Prime Minister announced the abolition with a promise to reallocate resources to the ‘frontline’ and we’re clear that must include dentistry.”
Last month the BDA set out written evidence to the Public Accounts Committee indicating a decade of austerity funding means thousands of NHS dentists are now delivering some NHS treatment at a loss.
And the Treasury’s unwillingness to help NHS dentistry stand on its own two feet is accelerating the exodus to the private sector, it warned.
The Prime Minister says he’s going to ‘shift money to the frontline,’ but will a broken NHS dental service see a penny of this?
“A simple new NHS patient exam loses a typical practice £7.69; a denture, £42.60,” the BDA claims.
“We have lambasted recent Government plans to raise NHS charges, which in the past merely acted as a cover for cuts, within a static budget that’s barely changed in a generation.
Labour has pledged reform of the failed contract in NHS dentistry – but a fair funding settlement has to underpin meaningful negotiations.”
General Dental Practice Committee chairman, Shiv Pabary, adds: “The Prime Minister says he’s going to ‘shift money to the frontline,’ but will a broken NHS dental service see a penny of this?
“Choices made at the Treasury have left millions unable to access care, while practices lose money doing NHS work.
“We cannot build a service fit for the future without sustainable funding.”