Patients face '90-mile trip' to see a NHS dentist

Some patients face a 90 mile round trip to see an NHS dentist according to a dentist union.

The British Dental Association say patients face a 'postcode lottery' of care after £20 million was pulled from dental services in Wales over the last three years.

Figures show 15% of Welsh NHS dental clinics accepted new adult patients last year - with 28% taking on new child patients.

BDA Wales said dentists are being penalised by the NHS dental contract system.

The model can see funding returned to health boards when practitioners are unable to meet targets based on their activity levels. The same model is also used in England.

Tom Bysouth, chair of the BDA's Welsh General Dental Practice Committee, said families are 'paying the price' of a 'failed system':

NHS Direct data shows people living in Aberystwyth face a near 90-mile round trip to see a dentist which is accepting new patients, while people in Newtown face 80-mile journeys and those in Cardiff face travelling almost 30 miles.

A Welsh Government spokesperson said it's disappointed BDA Wales has failed to recognise the changes it has made: