A new framework for dental care in the island will prioritise preventative rather than treatment based care.

That is the message from Health and Social Care Minister David Ashford MHK.

Mr Ashford was responding to a question in this week’s House of Keys sitting from Ramsey MHK Lawrie Hooper.

Mr Hooper asked what action the DHSC had taken to address the shortfall of NHS dentist services.

Mr Ashford responded by stating that about 40% of the island’s residents regularly attended dental appointments for the last 15 years and his department recognised there were some people who did not wish to regularly see a dentist.

But he insisted the department was planning reform which would come in the guise of a new framework contract for NHS dentists.

Mr Ashford said: ’The department is in the early stages of developing a new general dental services contract with help from the dental profession.

’The new contract will provide a framework to ensure that the department is able to provide good quality NHS dental services for people who wish to use them.’

However, Mr Hooper said his constituents had told him they are suffering a shortfall in the number of available NHS dental appointments.

To this, Mr Ashford responded that the department had a set budget, but that the current strategy for dental care was, in his opinion, not the correct one.

Their back and forth exchange was then halted by Ayre and Michael MHK Tim Baker. Mr Baker welcomed a long term solution for dental care but agree with Mr Hooper that the island needs short term solutions now.

Mr Ashford responded: ’There are reviews on going at the moment, but looking at UDA (units of dental activity), we are at the highest we’ve been for the last 10 years, both in terms of patients and of funding per head.’

Mr Ashford again stated the need to ’incentivise prevention’.

Mr Hooper asked when will the new contract be ready and what is the short term strategy.

Mr Ashford said the new contract is scheduled for April 2019.

Looking at the short term, he added that UDAs had been opened at three dentists and one of them was still open to taking more NHS patients.

He also pointed out that just because someone lives in an area, their circumstances may mean they request a place in another area’s dental practices.

Mr Ashford told Mr Hooper of a person in the Ramsey MHK’s constitutency who contacted the Minister saying due to working in Douglas, he wanted a place with a Douglas dentist so he was able to have an appointment in his lunch hour.