As government officials prepare to answer questions from the profession, The Herald is launching a survey of our readers.

The Scottish Government is facing a ‘six-month checkup’ on its reform of NHS dentistry which was introduced last November.

Senior officials will come face to face with the dental profession as around 2,000 delegates gather in Glasgow for the annual Scottish Dental Show on May 31.  

Tom Ferris, the Chief Dental Officer (CDO), Gillian Leslie, Deputy CDO, and Elaine Hutchison, Dental Care Professional Advisor at the Scottish Government will be appearing as part of the education programme. 

They will provide an update on progress in implementing what the Government described at its launch as a “high-trust, low bureaucracy model” and will take questions from dental professionals.

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Among the changes introduced was a significant reduction in the ‘items of service’ – treatments, procedures and undertakings – for which NHS dentists receive payment, from more than 500 to 45.

Fees - for fillings, extractions, dentures, root canal, and other common dental treatments -  increased with the aim of making it more affordable for dental surgeries to provide these on an NHS basis.

The hope was that NHS activity would increase as a result, reducing waiting lists, and making dental treatment more accessible again to patients on the NHS instead of having to go private. 

Routine check-ups also changed. Instead of fixed six-monthly recalls, dentists can now choose how often a patient should have an NHS dental examination based on their treatment needs. This can range from less than six months, to once every two years.

The Government said the changes were designed to “empower dentists to use their clinical discretion and knowledge of best practice in delivering care.”

It added: “Payment reform is also the first step towards a truly modern NHS dental service which appropriately assesses, responds to and supports the oral health needs of every patient in Scotland.”

At the time, the reform was welcomed by The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh’s Faculty of Dental Surgery.

It said that the previous item of service funding model “disproportionately emphasised treatment over prevention” and was being replaced with “a more streamlined approach”.

The Faculty added: “This will mean general dental practitioners (GDPs) in Scotland will be remunerated for aiding in the prevention of oral health issues as well as treatment, in a bid to tackle soaring waiting list backlogs within the NHS.”

Today, The Herald is launching a survey of readers in collaboration with Scottish Dental magazine to discover your experience of NHS dentistry post-pandemic and what impact - of any - these recent reforms have had on your access to, and experience of, NHS dental care.

You can complete the survey, anonymously by clicking this link.