THE Government has been urged to revise new NHS dentistry targets which are "undermining patient care".

Bradford South MP Judith Cummins asked Health Secretary Matt Hancock about the targets after being contacted by a whistleblower from dentistry chain, Mydentist, who claimed dentists had been advised to prioritise check-ups over providing treatment to patients in order to meet new NHS targets introduced as part of the pandemic response.

However, Mydentist said the claims were "untrue".

Speaking during a statement on Covid-19, Mrs Cummins said: "Despite assurances by the Secretary of State and the Minister, it is now clear that the newly imposed NHS dentistry targets are in fact actively undermining patient access to urgent treatments during the pandemic as I warned they would. 

“Last week a whistle-blower at the UK’s largest dental chain with over 600 practices – Mydentist -  sent me an internal memo that advised them to prioritise routine check-ups over treatments in order to meet the new targets.  

“Will the Secretary of State look at this urgently and agree to revise these targets to ensure they do not undermine patient care, as currently the system as it stands incentivises routine check-ups above those in severe pain?”  

The Health Secretary replied: “I want to thank our nation's dentists who have worked incredibly hard to get dentistry services going again. It is very important that we support them and the financial incentives underpin the need to restart as much as is possible.  

“It is of course challenging for to deliver dentistry services given there are so many aerosol generating procedures. I will ask the Dentistry Minister to speak to the hon. lady and perhaps meet with her to discuss the ongoing challenges.”  

Speaking afterwards, Mrs Cummins said: “Week in week out I’m contacted by people who need dental treatment. I am determined that the Government does not get this wrong by setting the wrong targets at the wrong time with the consequence of my constituents not being able to access an NHS dentist."

A spokesperson for Mydentist said: “These claims are untrue and we are writing to the Member for Parliament asking her to correct the record. The briefing that has been referred to was based directly on NHS guidance to explain the activity targets in England and to support clinicians in growing capacity and managing their diaries in order to meet them.

“At no point in the document – or indeed any document we have issued – is there any suggestion that routine treatment should be prioritised over urgent or emergency care. In fact, the briefing explicitly states that emergency patients should continue to be prioritised on the same day that triage takes place."

The spokesperson said the chain had "done everything possible" throughout the pandemic to support urgent and emergency patients. 

They added: "We are continuing to follow all NHS and Government guidelines and are working hard to meet NHS England’s activity targets so that more patients can safely get access to the care they need.”

The British Dental Association (BDA) said targets "must be abandoned". 

It said they force dentists to prioritise volume over need and that since January 1 thus year, NHS practices in England have faced steep financial penalties for failing to hit 45 per cent of their pre-pandemic activity levels.

The BDA said it is easier to achieve the "perverse targets" through routine care, as opposed to time consuming urgent treatment.