Patient payment plans

Times are hard, and nobody is pretending they are going to get easier in the short term. In spite of the Government's stated commitment to protect the National Health Service from the draconian spending cuts being imposed in other areas, it seems unlikely that NHS dentists can look forward to incomes even keeping pace with inflation over the next few years. When the 14 per cent increase in VAT is factored into the equation, it's not surprising more practices are seeking to expand their private work, or to leave the NHS altogether.

It's not only blighted career prospects which are prompting the NHS exodus. Many clinicians are equally frustrated by the limitations of the NHS treatment schedule, which inhibits their ability to offer their patients many of the latest remedial and cosmetic treatments. The last two decades have seen significant advances in diagnostic technology and clinical possibilities, and NHS dentists have been left, to a large degree, on the outside looking in.