A new initiative to boost dental access for residents in north east Essex has been launched by the region’s Primary Care Trust .
The North East Essex PCT is offering free ‘course of treatment' vouchers for patients in the area who have not seen a dentist for two years, as well as free assessments to adults and university students on campus.
In addition, the PCT plans to increase capacity to ensure patients who have gone 24 months without a dentist have access to a practice following their 'free' course of treatment .
The PCT will provide patients with a list of all the 25 practices that are participating in the initiative. Each practice will provide appointments outside their normal weekday working hours (evenings) and on weekends.
Those not eligible as a 24-month patient will be offered a free assessment in 10 locations across North East Essex.
In 2008, ‘street' dentists in Essex offered free check-ups to 1,200 children in just two days and provided a practice for the 240 (20 per cent) who required follow-up treatment .
Commenting on the initiative, a spokesperson for the PCT said: "Those patients who would not have been seen for 24 months would probably need a lot of dental treatment and this would be costly to return to a practice."
"By providing 'free' treatment we are encouraging them to have the treatment needed to be dentally fit and by providing access, following their treatment, we hope they will then continue to attend regularly. "
"It is a matter of being proactive in finding those patients rather than wait for them to come to us."
Dental Plan News
Free Dental Treatment Initiative Launched by North East Essex PCT
Mon, 12 Jan 2009
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