Blog

Patient Update

13/10/2020

Over the last few months we have been doing everything possible to get back to offering routine dental appointments as quickly and as safely we can. We are booking as many appointments as possible, however due to the extra precautions we are following as advised by the government and our regulatory bodies to keep you safe, the number of appointments available is still extremely limited.

We wanted to give you an update on how we are booking and prioritising appointments, why appointments are limited and advise what you can do to look after your oral health in the meantime:

1. All dental practices currently have a reduced capacity to provide NHS care. 

As with all dental providers, we must follow the Covid-19 safety procedures set by the government for NHS dental care. This includes leaving a 60-minute gap after each appointment, called ‘fallow time’. Fallow time is a set period where the surgery must remain empty before the next patient can be seen. We are also required to adhere to strict social distancing. As a result, our surgery is out of use for part of each day and we only have around 25% of our usual appointments available.

2. We are prioritising people in pain.

As you can imagine there are lots of people who have suffered a severe dental problem over the last 6 months. It is important that we prioritise these people to ensure we can minimise pain and discomfort wherever possible.

Our next priority is to see people who were already in treatment with us and those who have an ongoing oral health condition, for example re-booking filling appointments. 

3. We are still available for advice.

While we can’t see everyone face-to-face just yet, we are available to provide advice over the phone. Please give us a call if you need support, and especially if you notice any new symptoms such as ulcers that do not heal, bleeding, numbness, unexplained lumps or changes in colour or texture of your palate and gums.

4. Prevention is key!

While you wait to see a dentist for your routine check-up, it’s important that you maintain good oral health care to help prevent any problems. Please check out the resources for children and adults on our website here: https://www.northway-dental.co.uk/taking-care-of-your-oral-health/
 
As we learn more about the transmission of Covid-19, we hope that the fallow time between appointments will be able to be reduced and we will be able to see more patients. 

We are especially hoping to increase the number of routine NHS appointments we are able to offer, however if we don’t have any NHS capacity there may be an affordable alternative option to see one of our private dentists. If this is something you’d like to consider, please contact us to find out more information.

Thank you for your understanding and patience during the pandemic. Please be assured we are doing everything we can to get back to seeing all of our patients on a regular basis, and we will increase the number of appointments available as soon as it’s safe to do so.

We look forward to seeing you in practice soon and we hope you and your family are safe and well.

For more information about what to expect at your next appointment visit: https://www.northway-dental.co.uk/dentist-service-update/

Best wishes,

The Northway Team