Dental backlog to be tackled with ‘treatment blitz’ by NHS England

Home » News & Knowledge » Dental backlog to be tackled with ‘treatment blitz’ by NHS England

The current pandemic has resulted in millions of patients missing out on or struggling to access routine dental treatment causing a prolonged period of pain and suffering for most.

Thousands of people have felt forced to deal with the pain and turn to different methods of treatment to try and alleviate their pain, such as ‘DIY dentistry’ or alternatively have felt coerced into paying privately for treatment as results of the ever-growing dental backlog.

dental backlog

NHS England have now proposed a £50million funding scheme in order to provide 350,000 extra dental appointments, during evenings and weekends, due to an extreme backlog exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

This funding scheme will enable NHS dentists in the UK to offer up to 350,000 extra appointments during February and March in order to clear the backlog and to get NHS Dental services ‘back to pre-pandemic levels’.

However, the chair of the British Dental Association (BDA) has recognised that this is merely the beginning of solving the problem and stated ‘After a decade of cuts, a cash-starved service risks being offered money that can’t be spent. Hard-pressed practices are working against the clock and many will struggle to find capacity ahead of April for this investment to make a difference’.

The chair of the BDA has recognised that although this is a potentially good start to solving the issues caused by the pandemic, it is a small step in bringing dental treatment back to what it once was due to the lack of funding that was been given to the dental industry for a number of years prior to the pandemic as well as during. It is thought that millions will continue to suffer as a result of this leaving them with a significant detriment to their health and wellbeing.

Issues caused by the delay in treatment

Increased pain
Increased infections and repeat infections
Long term risk of harm
Poor oral hygiene
Unresolved issues, like broken teeth

If you have suffered as a result of these delays, then you may have a possible dental negligence claim.

Do I have a claim?

To bring a claim in dental negligence, you must prove the following two things:

That a medical professional breached their duty of care to you. This could be through the delay in treatment or a failure to refer you to another medical professional or department.
That this breach caused you significant harm, above and beyond what you would have suffered in any event. In cases of delayed treatment, this could be a year of pain and suffering with no treatment or support offered by a medical professional. In more serious cases, this could lead to a failure of diagnosis or the requirement for further surgeries.

How to make a claim?

You may be entitled to compensation if you feel that there has been a delay in your treatment or a delay in your referral.

The team at Oakwood Solicitors Ltd will be able to give you free advice on the prospects of your case and advise whether you would be eligible to make a claim.

How long will my case take to run?

Given the complexities involved in pursuing Clinical Negligence claims, they can often take 18-24 months to conclude and longer if Court proceedings have to be issued. Our investigations start by obtaining all relevant records and protocols before approaching independent medical experts for their opinion.

We will provide you with regular updates on the progress of your case to ensure that you are kept up to speed.

How much is my claim worth?

It is often difficult to value clinical negligence claims at their outset given the complexities involved, however we will pursue two forms of compensation for you:

Firstly, we will pursue compensation known as general damages. This is an award of money for the pain and suffering you have endured as a result of the negligence.

Secondly, we will pursue compensation known as special damages. This is an award of money for all of your out-of-pocket expenses such as travel expenses, medication costs, loss of earnings or treatment costs both past and future. This list is not exhaustive and is very case-specific.

Why choose Oakwood Solicitors Ltd to make your dental negligence case?

We have a dedicated team of solicitors and paralegals who have many years of experience running cases of this nature. They are highly trained to deal with all aspects of clinical negligence.

We want to ensure that clients are not overwhelmed by legal jargon (medical terms that they don’t understand), and to allow the claims procedure to be as transparent as possible.

The majority of clinical negligence cases are funded by a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA), more commonly known as a ‘no-win, no-fee’ agreement. This means that there will be nothing to pay upfront and nothing to pay if the claim has been lost.