THOUSANDS of Ilkley people will have to go private for their dental care or face the search for out-of-town healthcare amid Government health service changes.

The large Acorn Villas Dental Practice on The Grove, Ilkley, has announced it is to pull out of treating most NHS patients, and must remove half of the patients on some of its dentists' lists - partly as a result of changes to the health service.

Those who currently pay around £20 per year for NHS dental care could find themselves paying £40 per check-up as private patients, with additional treatment costing more, or sign up to a monthly payment scheme.

The practice will continue to treat children and those on income support who receive free NHS dental care. But those adults who wish to stick with the NHS could face a trek beyond Wharfedale to register with another dentist.

Meanwhile Airedale Primary Care Trust (PCT), which is to take on the management of local NHS dentistry next year, says it may recruit dentists from abroad to help provide for local people - and is working towards providing new NHS dental care in Wharfedale.

Dentist Steve McGurk, a partner at Acorn Villas, said the new contract for dentists being brought in nationally next April was one of the reasons for the practice's decision.

Dentists all over the country are yet to see the precise details of the new contracts, and there are fears that Government moves to hand over the management of NHS dental care to Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) nationally could result in not enough money being made available for dentists to carry on treating NHS patients.

However, Mr McGurk said there were other factors affecting the 101-year-old practice's decision to go private, including a need to cut the number of patients to maintain standards in future.

"It's a big decision for us," he said. "The main reason we took this decision, with the Government changes aside, is that we're not willing to compromise the level of care."

It has provided NHS dental care since the health service's beginnings in 1948.

Mr McGurk did not speculate on the number of patients to be affected, but the practice expects more than a third of its adult patients will leave. Some patients, meanwhile, have estimated that several thousand Ilkley people will be affected by the changes at the practice.

However, Mr McGurk said many of the practice's patients have been understanding about the circumstances about the decision to go private.

"The response from our patients has been very, very understanding. A lot of patients are probably more aware that there are fundamental problems with the NHS system. We've taken a lot of heart from that."

But long-time Ilkley patient Geoff Oldham, of St James Road, believes the practice's decision will have a serious effect on healthcare provision in the area.

Mr Oldham - who has been registered with the practice since he came to Ilkley more than 30 years ago - questioned his own dentist's claim that the proper standard of care could not be provided to more than half of the dentist's 2,200 patients.

"I have been a patient of the practice ever since coming to Ilkley 33 years ago," said Mr Oldham. "I have always had excellent treatment and have never 'expected', or felt I 'deserved' more. Nor has any patient I have spoken to in the last week complained about the treatment they have been getting."

He says Denplan's private 'routine health care' plan, has costs ranging from £9.95 to £29.95 per month for those who need more treatment.

To add to patients' problems, residents claim few other dental practices are thought to be taking on new NHS patients. Some of the older patients in particular, who could face a longer-distance bus trek to visit a new dentist, are said to be upset by the move.

Airedale PCT corporate development director, David Riley, confirmed the PCT would take over the commissioning of dentistry in April 2005, and said it was now an 'urgent priority' for the PCT to help provide an alternative NHS dentist.

"We are working with the Department of Health to try to recruit more dentists to Airedale. There is a shortage of dentists throughout the country and one initiative we are looking at is recruiting dentists from overseas to join our practices."

He said the provision of NHS dentistry at the replacement for the Coronation Hospital remained a key priority.