Following concerns raised by members of the community regarding the lack of available NHS dental appointments when the surgery in Chilton closed and other local surgeries advised they were not accepting additional NHS patients, the Town Council began to investigate what options were available to residents, writes Sue Reece.
At the beginning of November 2024 the Town Clerk, on behalf of the Council, contacted NHS NE and Cumbria Integrated Care Board (ICB) to enquire if, as part of the government Dental Recovery Plan, the new dental vans for isolated communities could visit Chilton.
After some further prompting, the ICB responded on Friday advising whilst long-term arrangements are put in place to improve dentistry care, nationally vans have been deployed to target rural and coastal communities in the most under-served areas.
However, the NE and Cumbria is not one of the twelve areas identified to receive funding for this initiative.
Pauline Fletcher, Head of Dental contracting, underlined that the ICB are “very conscious of the serious challenges that many of our residents are facing in accessing services, this is reflective of the national dentist crisis and they are regularly seeing dental providers across the region giving notice on their NHS contracts as they are unable to meet local demand and the provision they (the ICB) have commissioned from them”.
NE and Cumbria ICH have made additional funding available to practices who have the capacity to provide treatment for patients with the highest clinical needs. This includes patients requiring urgent or emergency dental care where there is a significant risk of deterioration and/or longer-term consequences, patients who are vulnerable for medical or social reasons (i.e. patients with specifies medical conditions, looked after children, adults with care and support needs) and patients requiring primary care dentistry intervention before planned secondary dental or medical care can be progressed. During 2024-25, 13,238 appointment slots have been commissioned from practices in County Durham.
This does include practices in Spennymoor, Newton Aycliffe and Durham City. A full list is available on the Chilton Town Council website. The Urgent Dental Access Centre in Darlington is available by contacting the NHS 111 service and there are plans to procure an addition two centres in County Durham.
The ICB are hoping that, following recent debates in the House of Commons, there will be a renewed emphasis on dentistry. Chilton Town Council will continue to lobby for additional capacity to serve our local community and will provide updates on progress via our website www.chiltondurham-tc.gov.uk and noticeboards.
Ferryhill & Chilton's local community newspaper.
