A Call to Action

It follows last summer’s “The NHS belongs to the people – a call to action”, which encouraged patients, the public, staff and partners to join the debate about the sustainability challenges facing the NHS in England.

NHS dental services are provided in primary care and community settings, as well as in hospitals for more specialised care. The NHS in England spends £3.4 billion per year on dental care, with over a million patient contacts with NHS dental services each week. 

The oral health of the population has been steadily improving over the past 40 years, and access to NHS dental services has improved considerably over the last 5 years. 

However, despite these figures access to services remains a problem in some areas. There is also a wide variation in levels of dental disease across England, with the highest levels of disease in more deprived areas. Dental professionals agree that more could be done to focus on prevention, and to promote self care by patients and a better appreciation of good oral health generally. NHS England also wants to explore the potential wider role that dental professionals can play in promoting a healthy lifestyle and in identifying people at higher risk of other diseases, such as diabetes or hypertension. The engagement exercise is supported by partner organisations including the British Dental Association.