Listen
Dentist numbers hit new high
30/06/2009
The number of NHS dentists in Scotland has hit a record high.
Figures released today show that at the end of March this year, there were 2,739 dentists working in the General Dental Service (GDS) - a rise of 6.3 per cent on the previous year and 10.7 per cent since 2007.
Every NHS board in Scotland has seen a rise in the number of dentists.
The highest percentage increases in mainland boards were in Forth Valley (15.8 per cent), Fife (11.2 per cent) and Tayside (9.4 per cent), while the biggest increases in numbers were in Greater Glasgow and Clyde (30), Lothian (26) and Tayside and Forth Valley (both 21).
Minister for Public Health, Shona Robison, said: "This significant rise of 163 dentists in just a year means Scotland now has a record number of NHS dentists.
"The Scottish Government is determined to reverse the years of neglect in NHS dentistry.
"Since taking office in May 2007, we have worked hard to increase the numbers of adults and children registered with a dentist.
"We have seen the first students begin their studies at the new Aberdeen Dental School, with their state-of-the-art, 21-million-pound building due to open soon on NHS Grampian's Foresterhill site.
"And earlier this year, we announced 82 million pounds for new primary care facilities across Scotland, which will see 13 new standalone dental centres built across the country, with two more as part of multi-function health centres."
The percentage of the Scottish population registered with an NHS GDS dentist at December 31, 2008, was 78.7 per cent for children and 59.3 per cent for adults. There has been a 10 per cent and 18 per cent increase in the number of registrations for children and adults respectively from December 2007 to December 2008.