More NHS dental appointments for Portsmouth to tackle "dentistry crisis"
Many people in Portsmouth have struggled to get dental care on the health service
Last updated 11th Oct 2022
It's going to be another six months before Portsmouth sees thousands more NHS dental appointments made available.
Health service bosses say extra provision is being put in place from next April - the equivalent of 15 additional dentists.
The city has the seventh lowest number of NHS dentists per 100,000 in the country, at 42.
Jo York, lead for dental commissioning for NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board, said: "We are aware of the scale of the challenge to improve access for people currently struggling to get NHS dental care, especially in areas like Portsmouth.
"We are in the process of arranging extra activity, which we hope will be available from April 2023.
"Longer term we are exploring how to work with education partners to train more dental practice staff locally, building relationships with patient representatives and dental providers, and seeking to better understand patient needs so that in future we can better design services around those needs."
Labour councillors will put a motion before the city council on Tuesday calling for a series of measures to tackle the severe shortage of NHS dentists in Portsmouth.
Cosham councillor Asghar Shah, who is proposing the motion, said: "The situation is shocking and people are very worried.
"I have had many residents contacting me to say they cannot get NHS treatment for themselves or for their children.
"We are not the only people concerned about this crisis and this motion is intended to build on the work already underway to tackle the problem but further action must be taken."