All or nothing?

It’s fair to say that, in these uncertain financial times, a full transition to private practice will leave many principals feeling a little weak at the knees. Why should you, after all, leave the relative⇐ ⇔security of the NHS and put in place entirely new funding options for your patients?

However, these days the transition to private practice is not an ‘all or nothing’ choice and there are plenty of options available. As an example, the overwhelming majority of Denplan practices offer a mixed service of both NHS and private care. With so much change on the horizon within the NHS, it makes good business sense to at least look at the available options and consider the ways in which you can secure your practice’s success long into the future.

Timing

The current target-driven approach favoured by the NHS is believed by many to be at odds with the patient-focused approach that is at the foundation of professional training. This was cited by many as one of the main reasons for practices moving away from the NHS when the last new NHS contract was introduced in 2006. However, the Department of Health seems to have learned from these experiences and the piloting of new approaches to fund NHS dental care is well under way, although the confirmed details of such a new contract remain unknown.