Town's NHS dentist quits over contract (From Tewkesbury Admag)

Town's NHS dentist quits over contract

PATIENTS wanting NHS dental treatment in Winchcombe will have to travel into Cheltenham in future after their local dentist announced he was going private.

And he warned that government plans to impose a new NHS contract on the profession could lead to an inferior service.

Letters have been sent to patients of the Stone House dental practice in Abbey Terrace in telling them of the decision. Practice owner Michael Lowdell said that with the government intending to impose a new NHS contract on dental practices, he would be not be able to meet the criteria.

"Under the new scheme there would be incentives to use poor quality materials, and treatment targets," he said. Mr Lowdell wants to use only superior quality materials for all treatments such as fillings, crowns and dentures.

He added: "We think this may encourage more treatment to be carried out than is absolutely necessary which contradicts our philosophy of conservative therapy."

The change means there may be an increase in fees for some items but the practice is willing to see all children under the age of 18 free if their parents or guardians are registered as regular private patients.

Becky Parish, spokeswoman for Cheltenham and Tewkesbury Primary Care Trust, said practices could choose not to take up the new NHS contracts, in which case the funding released would be used by the trust to commission alternative services for patients.