BDA: Action needed in Scotland as attendance gap between rich and poor reaches record levels

While registration in Scotland has reached record levels (94.2 per cent) data from the NHS Scotland Information Service Division show the actual attendance gaps for both adults and children have trebled in the past 10 years, and have reached an all-time high. Among adults, 62.2 per cent of those in the poorest areas had seen their dentist in the last two years, compared to 72.7 per cent of those in the most affluent neighbourhoods. Among children, the figures were 79.8 per cent and 89.2 per cent.

An attendance gap of nine points for children and 10 percentage points for adults has opened up, both rising from just three percentage points in 2008. Adults on lower incomes are actually more likely to be registered with an NHS dentist than their wealthier counterparts, at 97.5 per cent compared to 88.6 per cent. But the widening gap in attendance is deeply concerning.

The BDA has been leading calls for the Scottish government to do more to boost participation among adults in deprived areas – particularly to halt the rise of oral cancer through early detection. Every year oral cancer kills three times as many Scots as car accidents, with an estimated annual cost to NHS Scotland of over £65 million.