Coronavirus: Urgent dental centres in Peterborough and Cambridgeshire

Coronavirus has focused the needs of the NHS and quite correctly on those who have contracted this deadly disease.

But it has affected people in many ways thought impossible just a few months ago and one area that has been much neglected has been dental care.

Government attention has been concentrated on getting everything needed to hospitals and care homes and protecting staff as much as possible, and the focus now is to get much needed Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) delivered as quickly as possible.

But with every NHS dental surgery (and most private dental clinics) closed since March 20 what happens to people who need emergency dental treatment?

NHS England said it is providing the UDCs as fast as it possibly can to treat patients who need urgent medical help for problems such as abscesses.

A spokesperson for NHS England and NHS Improvement in the East of England, said: “A number of Urgent Dental Care (UDC) hubs have been established across the East of England to provide care for people with urgent and emergency dental problems, including three hubs across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

“The hubs have been designed to meet the distinct needs of people with urgent dental care needs, while allowing appropriate separation and treatment of patients in line with social distancing measures.

“Access to the hubs is via a triage system (drop-ins are not permitted) and anyone who needs urgent or emergency dental care should call their regular practice in the first instance.

“For those who cannot contact their dentist or do not have one, and require urgent care, patients are advised to use the NHS 111 online service available here:

https://111.nhs.uk/.

: https://111.nhs.uk/.”

Robert Alexander, Local Democracy Reporting Service