Registrations with dentists in Ealing plummet

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Figures suggest only one in three registered with NHS

Research by local Councillor Gary Malcolm has revealed that the number of people registered with NHS dentists has plummeted across the capital since 1997.

The figures show that just over one in three adults and under half of all children across the capital are registered with an NHS dentist.
Ealing Primary Care Trust (PCTs) has recorded a 22.6% drop in adults signing up, leaving less than one in three (30.6%) adults registering with an NHS dentist.

Both Ealing and neighbouring Hounslow are among the 5 London PCTs with the lowest percentage of children registered with a NHS dentist. Ealing also recorded the second sharpest fall in the number of children registering since 1997, a figure double that of most London Boroughs.

Gary Malcolm, Lib Dem spokesperson, said: “With so few dentists accepting NHS patients it is little wonder that the levels of people registering with the NHS are so low. As NHS dental cover declines so too does the dental health of those in Chiswick.”

He added: “The Government must get to grips with the crisis in dental care. Every patient deserves to be able to register with a local NHS dentist, not to have to travel miles and miles in search of service.”

Registrations with a general dental service dentist at 30 September in the years 1997 to 2004 by Primary Care Trust

	1997		2004		%age Change in people registered 1997 - 2004
Primary Care Trust	Adults	Children	Adults	Children	Adults	Children
Kensington and Chelsea	29.5%	32.0%	19.4%	24.7%	-10.2%	-7.3%
City and Hackney	41.9%	31.7%	29.2%	26.3%	-12.7%	-5.4%
Tower Hamlets	40.4%	36.0%	30.7%	32.2%	-9.7%	-3.8%
Ealing	53.2%	58.2%	30.6%	38.5%	-22.6%	-19.8%
Hounslow	60.1%	60.5%	33.0%	38.5%	-27.2%	-22.0%
Lambeth	55.8%	53.4%	33.5%	39.3%	-22.3%	-14.1%
Newham	41.5%	42.5%	36.7%	39.8%	-4.8%	-2.8%
Islington	55.1%	44.2%	41.6%	40.8%	-13.5%	-3.4%
Southwark	50.2%	46.9%	37.3%	40.9%	-12.9%	-6.0%
Camden	64.4%	50.6%	42.1%	42.3%	-22.4%	-8.3%
Barking and Dagenham	40.4%	41.5%	35.7%	42.4%	-4.7%	0.9%
Wandsworth	47.8%	59.0%	32.5%	46.6%	-15.3%	-12.4%
Westminster	57.7%	56.9%	37.5%	47.1%	-20.2%	-9.8%
Barnet	33.4%	53.3%	28.8%	47.5%	-4.6%	-5.7%
Epping Forest	35.1%	54.2%	32.8%	47.7%	-2.4%	-6.5%
Croydon	52.7%	64.1%	37.8%	51.6%	-14.9%	-12.5%
Hillingdon	57.9%	61.9%	41.2%	52.8%	-16.7%	-9.1%
Sutton and Merton	45.6%	53.6%	37.3%	52.8%	-8.3%	-0.8%
Brent	59.9%	63.2%	45.2%	53.0%	-14.7%	-10.3%
Waltham Forest	46.9%	60.9%	38.5%	53.8%	-8.3%	-7.1%
Enfield	42.1%	60.1%	35.6%	54.3%	-6.5%	-5.8%
Harrow	45.7%	59.6%	39.5%	54.8%	-6.2%	-4.8%
Richmond and Twickenham	35.4%	60.9%	22.0%	55.5%	-13.4%	-5.4%
Lewisham	51.9%	54.8%	45.6%	55.9%	-6.3%	1.1%
Bexley Care Trust	45.0%	66.4%	37.2%	55.9%	-7.8%	-10.4%
Bromley	32.1%	58.5%	28.5%	59.5%	-3.7%	0.9%
Haringey	60.0%	64.8%	49.1%	59.5%	-10.9%	-5.3%
Kingston	42.2%	71.3%	29.7%	59.7%	-12.5%	-11.6%
Redbridge	52.0%	64.4%	44.7%	60.0%	-7.3%	-4.4%
Havering	52.6%	64.9%	41.2%	60.5%	-11.4%	-4.4%
Greenwich	44.5%	64.0%	40.9%	60.7%	-3.6%	-3.3%
Welwyn Hatfield	52.8%	77.5%	43.7%	66.7%	-9.2%	-10.8%

1. Figures have been taken from Hansard Parliamentary Answers 21 Dec 2004 : Column 1671W.

February 16, 2005