This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Anniversary of Dental Action Plan
16/03/2006
Progress in tackling Scotland's poor oral health record was highlighted today on the first anniversary of the Executive's Dental Action Plan.
Deputy Health Minister Lewis Macdonald said solid progress has been made during the first year of the three-year plan, but there is a lot more to be done over the next two years.
Speaking during a visit to Chalmers Dental Centre in Edinburgh Mr Macdonald said:
"A year ago, we announced a radical change in the funding of NHS dentistry in Scotland. Over the three years 2005-2008, we will increase funding of NHS dental services from £200 million to £350 million a year.
"In the last 12 months, we have doubled general practice allowance for all dentists treating any NHS patients to 6 percent of NHS earnings, and doubled it again to 12 percent for those dentists treating all categories of patients and committed to the NHS.
"That means £15 million in general practice allowance alone this year to high street dentists, plus millions more in premises payments, enhanced incentives for new dentists and support for dentists in remote rural areas.
"All of that is designed to give high street dentists who own their own premises the right financial rewards and incentives to stick with the NHS, or to come back to the NHS.
"At the same time, we have increased the number of salaried dentists directly employed by NHS Boards across Scotland. Salaried dentists, like those at the Chalmers Dental Centre, can treat people deregistered by their own dentist and give some competition to those dentists who have gone private.
"The number of dental students graduating from Scotland's dental schools will be around 138 this year, compared with only 108 five years ago. We are on course to meet our target of increasing the total number of dentists in Scotland by 200 over the Action Plan period 2005-2008.
"But there is a good deal still to do.
"In 2006-2007 we will: introduce free dental checks for all NHS dental patients from 1 April; provide dental students with additional bursaries of up to £4000 a year, in exchange for a commitment to work in the NHS; introduce enhanced payments for dentists serving deprived urban areas and update the fees system for NHS dental work.
"Chalmers Dental Centre is a great example of how we can provide better access for patients. Around 15,000 patients have been treated here in the last year by a salaried dental service which provides walk-in treatment for patients not registered with an NHS dentist.
""But we need all dentists to support the objective of enabling patients to choose NHS dentistry, if we are to give patients real choice and improve Scotland's oral health. I hope the next 12 months will see more and more dentists renew their commitment to the NHS."
The Action Plan for Improving Oral Health and Modernising NHS Dental Services was launched on 17 March 2005.
The Chalmers Dental Centre has four salaried general dental practitioners, one specialist salaried practitioner and one dental hygienist. It offers a service to Lothian residents who are not registered with a dentist under NHS arrangements. NHS Lothian received £558,000 from the Executive's Primary and Community Care Premises Modernisation Programme towards the creation of the Centre. It was opened in March 2005.