A dental practice in Bridlington has announced it is to close at the end of November.
Bupa Dental Care, which is based on Bessingby Way in Bridlington, has sent a letter out to patients explaining that the Bridlington practice is closing, with one of the reasons being that they are unable to recruit permanent dentists due to a national shortage.
The practice had private and NHS patients on its books.
The letter to patients, handed over to the Bridlington Echo by a client, reads as follows:
Thank you for being a patient at our practice. We wanted to let you know that the practice will be closing on 30th November and to explain what this means for you.
We’ve been working closely with NHS England for some time to find dentists to work at our practice.
This means we’re not able to offer our patients the level of service they expect and so, after careful
consideration, regrettably we’ll be closing on 30th November 2022.
We’re very sorry we’ve had to make this
decision, it’s not something we’ve taken lightly.
NHS England can help you and other patients find local dental care. You can search for another practice on the NHS website at nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist.
The letter also states:
If you’re currently having treatment with us, you can complete it before 30th November 2022. And if you need an emergency appointment, please call us. If you have an urgent dental problem after 30th November, please call the NHS Dental Helpline on 111.
A Bridlington resident who contacted the Echo after receiving his letter today is considering travelling to Turkey for his dental treatment.
He said:“I and my wife moved to Bridlington in November 2019. Since then it’s been a real task to get dental treatment done locally.
“Totally impossible to get any dentist in the whole of East Riding to take on NHS patients.
“I was a private patient at BUPA in Bridlington and was due to have a tooth filled today . However I found out by text my appointment had been canceled . I went into the dentist to be told it was closing at the end of November and only absolute emergency dental work would be done until then.
“This is an impossible situation and I’m now considering going abroad probably to Turkey or Budapest ?”
It is understood that other practices in Bridlington – both NHS and private – are not taking on any more patients, and it is also understood that people are having to travel to Hull and further afield for dental treatment.
Claire Pearson, Regional Operations Director at Bupa Dental Care, said: “We’ve been working closely with NHS England for over two years to find dentists for our Bridlington practice. Despite our best efforts, the critical national shortage of NHS dentists means we’ve been unable to recruit permanent dentists to this practice. This means we’re not able to offer patients the level of service they need and after careful consideration, we’ve made the very difficult decision to close the practice.”
