NHS Dental Patients - FOI Response Register

FoI Number
2024-030
Subject
NHS Dental Patients
Date Received
11/04/2024
Request and Response
  1. The number of recorded NHS Dental appointments in the last six calendar years (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 so far).

2019: 21197 booked appts       (2645 of which were DNA’d)

2020: 8365 booked appts         (806 of which were DNA’d)

2021: 11995 booked appts       (691 of which were DNA’d)

2022: 13678 booked appts       (1331 of which were DNA’d)

2023: 12686 booked appts       (1205 of which were DNA’d)

2024: 3156 booked appts         (to 31st March) (DNAs tbc)

  1. The number of NHS Dental Patients who have not had an NHS dentist appointment since the year 2020.

In accordance with FOISA s 17(1), NHS Shetland confirms that it does not hold the information requested as our systems to do record the data to answer this exact question.

In case it is of some help, the closest figures we have are as follows:

Current Participation Figures for GDS in Shetland – March 2024

 

Total % of NHS registered patients actually seen in last 3 years

Total % of NHS registered patients not seen for at least 3 years

GDS

62%

38%

Caveat

  • This is the best-case scenario for access of those registered as NHS patients.
  • Many of those who have been seen in the past three years will have just been seen for a one-off emergency visit.
  • Therefore the ‘access’ for those patients could not be considered for full, routine and preventative care

Current Participation Figures for PDS in Shetland – March 2024

 

Total % of NHS registered patients actually seen in last 3 years

Total % of NHS registered patients not seen for at least 3 years

PDS

41%

59%

Caveat

  • This is the best-case scenario for access of those registered as NHS patients.
  • Many of those who have been seen in the past three years will have just been seen for a one-off emergency visit.
  • Therefore the ‘access’ for those patients could not be considered for full, routine and preventative care
  1. A list of all reasons recognised by the health board for a dental patient to become deregistered.

N/A – as far as NHS Shetland is aware, there have been no de-registrations in Shetland since 2020

  1. The number of Dental Patients who are recognised as having been deregistered as NHS patients in the last six years (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 so far).

Please provide a breakdown of the number of deregistered patients per year and by reason for deregistration.

N/A – see answer to Q3