Professional Optimised Accessible Web Site Website Design Cumberland UK

Web site design news in Cumberland- A Cumbrian spokesman for the profession spoke out yesterday, warning that those unable to pay would be forced to rely on a basic 1940s-style NHS service – treating only emergency patients and children. Currock dentist Richard Hellen, a spokesman for the north Cumbria local dental committee, said practitioners were being left with little option but to seriously consider leaving the NHS. The latest practice to opt for partial privatisation is the Spedding Dental Clinic in Warwick Road which wrote to patients to inform them that two of the four dentists were going private. Mr Hellen said dentists were turning their backs on the NHS because the government has failed to properly fund the service, and proposed new contracts due to be introduced in five months will not improve the situation. “Dentists have to run their practices as privately-owned businesses,” he said. “They want to provide a modern, prevention-centred service to their patients and this is not possible on current funding. “With what we’re hearing now about the new contracts, a lot of people will be jumping down off the fence and going private. After the new contracts, the number [of NHS dentists] is likely to be very, very small.” Mr Hellen warned that Carlisle could be left with an access centre providing what he described as “1940s-style dentists”. “They’ll pull out teeth, give you a denture, and ask you to clear off,” he added. None of the 81 dental practices in Cumbria is currently accepting new NHS patients. Of the 19 NHS practices in Carlisle listed on the government’s website, four told The Cumberland News they were now private, five were considering plans to privatise, and five said they were staying with the NHS. The remainder declined to comment. Carlisle MP Eric Martlew accused dentists of cashing in on the shortage in the profession and said they were hoping to make more money by going private. “The practice is saying that it is the government’s fault,” he said. “If so many are now going private are they competing? Are they letting us know about pricing? Do you go in and see a price list on the wall? “If these people want to be in the private sector they need to let the public know what their prices are so people can select which is the cheapest. They are exploiting the shortage situation.” The Spedding Dental Clinic is the latest to write to patients to inform them that two of the four dentists at the practice will soon go private. Private patients often pay for treatment through personal healthcare contracts typically costing between £10 to £30 per month. Other private patients opt for a “pay as you go” type arrangement. Jack Spedding, from the Warwick Road clinic, said: “There’s absolutely no secrecy about our fees. There are just five months to the new contracts but we are not being told what our obligations are, what we would be paid and how many people the Government would expect us to see. People are bailing out because of the uncertainty. “I’m doing this to make my patients better off. We are being asked to see our regular people less often for those who don’t have a dentist. We feel we’re doing this for our regular people.” North Cumbria Primary Care Trust is the official body responsible for overseeing NHS dental care in the area. Its director of commissioning and performance improvement, Michael Smillie, said he expected Government instructions about the new NHS dental contracts to be issued within the next few months. “In the meantime we are committed to retaining as many dental practices as possible within the NHS,” he said. The PCT say they are working on improvements to the local service. The drive includes offering all NHS dentists the government’s new NHS dental contract from April 2006, recruiting more dentists from the UK and overseas, and offering urgent treatment for non-registered patients at Dental Access Centres such as the one at Hilltop Heights on London Road, Carlisle. In 2003, there was a shortage of 1,850 dentists in England. Some Cumbrians are making an 80-mile round trip to Northumberland for den -

Area:	:	Cumberland Website Design
Incorporating	:	We also cover the following areas; Carlisle, Whitehaven, Wokington, Penrith, Keswick, Brampton.

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Cumberland Professional Optimimed Accessible Website Design

Cumberland Website Design

Website design ( web site )

Optimised website design

Website hosting

website Search Engine Marketing

Professional website design

web design production

Ecommerce web design

Ethical web design