Decline of the specialist

Stephen Fayle, a Paediatric Dental Consultant and member of the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry, was one of a panel of five giving evidence to the inquiry. Asked by MP Andrew Percy whether there was a crisis in the oral health of children in England, Mr Fayle said that the crisis was in the decline in specialist paediatric dentistry services within primary care in some regions. This was contributing to dental decay being the most common reason for a child between the ages of five and nine to be admitted to hospital in England.

The problem of high levels of decay in young children has been around for a long time, he said, but the number of specialists has fallen and this has coincided with a rising number of referrals to hospital of children with dental decay, in some areas needing an average of nine teeth extracted.

Barry Cockcroft, Chief Dental Officer for England concurred that there had been a reduction in specialists but denied that there was an actual shortage in total numbers. He said there should be better distribution of these specialists so that they could lead multi-disciplinary teams to ensure equitable access for children needing more complex care.