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06
Sept 2023
Harrogate NHS dentist to move to 'membership only' patient scheme
A Harrogate dentist has announced it will only see patients on a membership only basis from December.
Chatsworth House Dental Clinic, which is based on King’s Road, announced it will move to a monthly payment scheme once its NHS contract comes to an end.
The move comes as concern has been raised about the lack of access to NHS dentistry within the Harrogate district.
In a letter to patients seen by the Stray Ferret, Chatsworth House said it made the decision to “reduce appointment waiting times” and “improve prevention of dental disease and decay”.
It said:
Read more:
- Investigation: ‘Shocking’ waits for NHS dentists in Harrogate district
- Access to NHS dentists in North Yorkshire has ‘got worse’, says MP
- ‘Radical reform’ needed for North Yorkshire NHS dentists, says councillor
The letter adds that patients will be offered a membership plan of £21.45 per month - or 70p per day.
The practice had previously proposed plans to refer NHS patients to Starbeck Dental Centre in August 2020, but later dropped the proposal.
The Stray Ferret approached the clinic for comment on its plan, but had not received a response by the time of publication.
NHS dentist fears
It comes as politicians have raised concern over the lack of access to NHS dentistry in Harrogate and Knaresborough.
Daisy Cooper, MP for St Albans and Liberal Democrat health spokesperson, raised the issue in the House of Commons in February.
She said only half of children in North Yorkshire managed to see an NHS dentist last year, adding:
Meanwhile, Conservative Cllr Andrew Lee, chair of North Yorkshire Council’s health scrutiny panel, wrote to the government’s health and social committee in February with evidence over “extremely problematic” access to dentists.
A review of NHS dentistry published in August 2021 found that there was just one NHS dentist practice per 10,000 people in the Harrogate district.
Cllr Lee said:
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