Dental Extraction Waiting Times (Rural NHS Boards)

General Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 21 November 2024.

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Photo of Martin Whitfield Martin Whitfield Labour

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to reduce waiting times for dental extractions in rural national health service board areas. (S6O-03998)

Photo of Jenni Minto Jenni Minto Scottish National Party

Any long wait for surgery is highly regrettable. However, it is important to note that the overwhelming majority of NHS dental care is delivered in a primary care setting.

We are working with health boards to develop detailed annual delivery plans to support waiting list reductions and improve productivity. We continue to target resources to ensure that those who have been waiting longest are treated as soon as possible.

Photo of Martin Whitfield Martin Whitfield Labour

The results of a freedom of information request made to NHS health boards reveal a failure to deliver adequate dental care across Scotland. In NHS Dumfries and Galloway, children wait an average of 42 weeks, those in NHS Ayrshire and Arran wait for 20 weeks, and NHS Lothian has seen waiting times rise by almost 300 per cent since 2019.

The NHS is an emanation of the state, and article 24 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is clear that every child has a right to the

“highest attainable standard of health”

and access to essential care. What is the Scottish Government’s defence of its failure to live up to that human right?

Photo of Jenni Minto Jenni Minto Scottish National Party

I recognise that the waiting lists for young children are far too long. I have visited the dental hospital in Glasgow to see what work it is doing to improve throughput and the work that it is doing with health boards. I also met the British Dental Association Scotland last week and listened to its concerns. As I noted in my first answer, we expect health boards to deliver annual delivery plans to clearly set out how they will address long waits across all specialties, including paediatric dentistry.