Dental surgery is short of patients
Josef Taylor, Shane Smith, Nyi Lay Maung and Laura Simpson W03553h12
A DENTAL surgery set up to provide NHS-only care in Worthing has failed to see the expected number of patients sign up.
Tooth Booth, in Broadwater Boulevard, was commissioned by NHS West Sussex in response to Worthing residents’ concerns there was insufficient NHS dental care in the town.
But six months after launching, the practice has less than half the number of patients it had been projected, and is facing having to pay back the money that funded it to the government.
Dr Amit Rai, principal dentist, said: “The waiting room is empty a lot of the time. If we don’t fulfil the contract, we are going to have to give that money back to the government, and that is money that should be used for patient care.
“Traditionally, patients have complained there are not enough dentists that see people on a 100 per cent NHS basis, but that is what we do, so we don’t understand it.”
At the moment, the practice has around 1,000 patients, but it had been projected there would be 2,500 people signed up by now. If it was to run at full capacity, Dr Rai said Tooth Booth could cater for 6,000 people.
The practice has until the end of the financial year to increase patient numbers before the money would have to be returned to the government. Dr Rai would not disclose how much would have to be paid back, but said they need around 1,000 extra people to ensure the contract was fulfilled.
“This is no small thing. NHS West Sussex and the Department of Health spent a long time looking at these figures, so something has gone wrong and we don’t know what the reasons are,” he said.
“It could be that people don’t know we’re here, or that the reputation of the NHS industry in Worthing has been tarnished because a lot of practices used to say they were NHS but they actually weren’t and would charge private supplements, too.
“The future of the practice could be in doubt, but that would be down to the NHS. We wouldn’t want to deprive people in Worthing of NHS dental care.”
The practice opened on August 1, having been commissioned last January as part of a £1.8million investment in dentistry across the county by NHS Sussex.
Tim Price, West Sussex dental contracts manager at NHS Sussex, said: “Before Tooth Booth opened, we carried out a detailed review of what was needed in the area, and it was reported that there was significant demand for a new practice in the town. Tooth Booth then tendered for the contract and was successful.
“Dental practices do agree to a contract with the PCT, which sets out their funding in relation to their performance, and this may affect Tooth Booth if not enough people are coming forward.”
To book an appointment at Tooth Booth, call 01903 202411 or visit www.toothbooth.co.uk
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Monday 28 May 2012
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