New dental practice to open in Bolton

8:48am Sunday 16th March 2008

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A NEW dental practice will open in Bolton next month to ease the dental crisis facing the borough.

Health bosses have also vowed to increase the number of people who can access an NHS dentist from 58 per cent to 67 per cent by 2010.

None of Bolton's 35 NHS dental practices are currently accepting new patients.

The borough has one of the worst dental records in the country, with youngsters aged five having 2.49 missing, decayed or filled teeth, compared to a North-west average of two and a national average of just one.

The new practice will open in Wigan Road, Deane on April 1 and could eventually take on as many as 10,000 new patients.

It is the second dentist to open this year, the first, which is based at the Deane Clinic in Horsfield Street, Deane, opened in January.

Anna Basford, director of primary care development at Bolton Primary Care Trust, said: "Between April 2008 and April 2009, 13,200 extra patients will be able to access dental services. It's unlikely more than 70 per cent of the population will want to access dental care in Bolton but we should be aspiring to providing access to a dentist to anyone who needs one."

The latest statistics have revealed just 58.2 per cent of people - 54.4 per cent of adults and 69.9 per cent of children - in Bolton have an NHS dentist.

Each year almost 1,000 complaints or queries are made about the NHS dental provision in Bolton.

Health chiefs are massively increasing investment in dental services in the borough.

An extra £852,000 will be pumped into provision every year to improve access.

It is planned to increase NHS provision to 63 per cent of the population by next year and to 67 per cent by 2010.

Dentists have backed the move but are sceptical so many additional patients will be able to access NHS treatment in just two years time.

Chris Brooks, one of Bolton's leading NHS dentists, said: "We are all in favour of anything that will improve access to NHS dentistry and opening a new practice is to be welcomed.

"We will be delighted if the target of 67 per cent of patients having access to an NHS dentist can be achieved, although we recognise it's ambitious given the current level of provision."