Dental Students To Help Tackle Carlisles NHS Dentists Shortage

Mon, 30 Jun 2008

Carlisle’s long-standing shortage of NHS dentists is set to be aided by eight students who will move to new outreach centres across the region.

The eight are among the first 32 students who successfully enrolled on a dental surgery degree at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) in Preston last September.

The dental surgery degree course was designed by health and education leaders across the north west of England in a bid to help tackle a shortage of NHS dentists in the area. Only those that have already graduated with a top science degree are considered for the course .

Demand for course-entry was far higher than previously expected, with 189 people applying for the first 32 places.

Such a high level of interest goes against the trend in recent years which has seen a significant drop in the number of people choosing to study dentistry nationally.

Many existing dentists have left the NHS in recent years, due to concerns with new contracts, setting up private practices instead.

This led to a national crisis which included more than 26,000 people being made to wait for treatment from an NHS dentist in north Cumbria.

The trainee dentists are now waiting for their exam results following their first year of study before moving out to centres in the north west where they will spend the next three years treating patients across the region.

They will also spend time improving their theory and practical skills, while others will also complete work placements at local practices.

Carlisle’s new dental education centre, currently being built at the Cumberland Infirmary, is one of four satellite centres that form the outreach bases of the £5.25m school of dentistry at UCLan.
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