12:51pm Saturday 28th August 2010
By Julian Robinson
DENTISTS in Hampshire now have more than 20,000 NHS dental places available – just three years after desperate patients were queueing for hours to secure cheaper care.
In a remarkable turnaround, thousands of families can now look forward to NHS treatment after it was revealed 40 practices are accepting patients.
The sudden availability of care comes months after a helpline recorded 2,500 patients scrambling for just 100 spaces at a new NHS dentist in the New Forest.
And it represents a stark contrast to 2007, when more than 100 people queued in the streets in Titchfield Common to register at another new surgery.
It is thought a “perception lag” may be behind the lack of take up on the NHS availability – a term used to explain how patients may have simply assumed there was no NHS treatment on offer.
Health chiefs say a huge amount of investment has been ploughed into providing the spaces over the last three to four years.
Natalie Jones, lead commissioning manager of primary care dental services at NHS Hampshire, said: “We know that dental healthcare is a priority for Hampshire residents, and are proud of our continued efforts to increase the amount of NHS dental care available in the county.
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