A new dental practice in Preston will help clear the Lancashire town’s entire waiting list for NHS dental care .
According to reports in the Lancashire Evening Post, NHS bosses have confirmed a new super surgery will open in the town next year, providing access to an NHS dentist for some 9,000 dental patients in the area.
There are currently around 7,700 patients in and around Preston who have registered with NHS Central Lancashire to see an NHS dentist .
However, there are fears the actual figure could be much higher as many patients may not have registered with the PCT’s Dental Access Database and others may have opted for private treatment .
The new dental centre is expected to start seeing patients on the PCT’s database from spring 2010. Those on the waiting list will be contacted to sign up and book appointments over the coming months.
Janice Nicholson, head of dental commissioning, said: "The new practice will significantly improve access to dentistry in Preston."
Bernard Alston, clinical director for dental services at NHS Central Lancashire, added that the surgery will be "a completely different practice to what people have been used to in the past".
