Dorset MPs team up to tackle ‘dental desert’

There are currently no dental practices taking on new NHS patients in Dorset.

Jessica Toale (Bournemouth West), Lloyd Hatton (South Dorset), Neil Duncan-Jordan (Poole) and Tom Hayes (Bournemouth East) have written a joint letter to Wes Streeting, the secretary of state for health and social care, calling for urgent action.

The letter, which follows multiple conversations with constituents struggling to access NHS dental care, outlines how patients are having to go as far as Southampton and Bristol to get access to an NHS dentist, or are taking matters into their own hands performing DIY dentistry.

Jessica said, “It really shouldn’t be impossible to access NHS dental care where you live, but for so many of my constituents, it is. The impact of this is significant, with children being admitted to hospital for dental issues that could’ve easily been prevented with access to NHS dental care.”