Agenda item

(To receive a report from NHS England and NHS Improvement (Midlands), which provides the Committee with an update on the provision of NHS dental services commissioned in Lincolnshire.  Carole Pitcher, Senior Commissioning Manager and Tom Bailey, Senior Commissioning Manager will be in attendance for this item)

The Chairman invited Carole Pitcher, Senior Commissioning Manager, NHS England and NHS Improvement (Midlands), Allan Reid, Consultant in Healthcare Public Health (Oral Health) and Rose Lynch, Commissioning Manager, Primary Care Dental Services, to remotely present the item to the Committee.

The report presented provided an update to the Committee on the provision of NHS dental services commissioned in Lincolnshire and provided an overview of the continuing effect of the Covid pandemic and the steps being taken to restore and recover services.

Whilst guiding the Committee through the report, reference was made to the NHS contracts in primary and community dental care that had been in place since 2006; the dental services offered in Lincolnshire, including out of hours service and secondary care.

The Committee was advised of the impact of the national pandemic upon dentistry and a timeline was available for the Committee to consider, which was detailed on pages 94 to 96 of the report.

The Committee was advised that during April – September 2021 (Q1 & Q2), providers had been required to deliver a minimum of 60% of their pre-Covid contractual activity, to continue to receive 100% payment.  Figure 1 on page 99 provided details of the achievements of the Lincolnshire providers during this period.

The Committee was advised that to ensure that NHS Dental services were at the forefront of the new Integrated Care System, NHS England/Improvement had appointed Kenny Hume as the new Local Dental Network Chair for Lincolnshire.

The issue of oral health in Lincolnshire was highlighted.  The Committee noted that the results of a recent survey had shown that in Lincolnshire average levels of dental decay were higher than the average for England. The report highlighted that children living in Boston had the highest levels of child dental decay in the region.  South Holland, East Lindsey and Lincoln also had child dental decay that placed them in the top ten lower tier local authorities in the region.  It was highlighted there was an east/west divide in childhood decay in Lincolnshire, and that this disparity was because the west of the County’s water supply was fluoridated under an existing fluoridation agreement and that the east of the County did not receive fluoridated water.  It was also highlighted that there were fewer dental services available in the east of the County.  Priorities for tackling child dental decay were shown at paragraph 8.8 of the report.

Note: Councillor S R Parkin left the meeting at 12:50pm.

During consideration of the item, the Committee raised the following points: -

·       Whether an NHS dentist was able to offer private treatment.  The Committee noted that most NHS dentists had a mix of NHS and private patients and that the percentage varied.  The Committee was advised that information was not available relating to private dental practices.  The Committee was advised further that general dentistry was provided through an annual contract;

·       The impact of non-fluoridation in the east of the County and its impact on dental decay in children;

·       Concerns were expressed to the lack of provision of dental services across Lincolnshire; as dental services no longer visited schools and the lack of provision of dental service in the east of the County;

·       The proposed new arrangements for commissioning under the Integrated Care System from April 2022;

·       Some concern was expressed that not enough information had been included as to what was being done to secure dental services for those areas who were unable to access services; and how many people entitled to free dental services were currently not receiving it in Lincolnshire.  A request was made for future reports to contain solutions for the problems patients were having in Lincolnshire and how Lincolnshire compared to the rest of the country;

·       A request was made for contracts for the Spilsby, Mablethorpe and Skegness areas to be prioritised.  The Committee noted that during the pandemic procurement had been paused, but this was now resuming and that there were plans to re-start the process out in the market;

·       Whether the availability of NHS dentists in Lincolnshire would improve in the future.  The Committee was advised that the situation would improve, with the recovery of services post the pandemic and the procurement process re-starting again in the new year to get better access to dental services across Lincolnshire; and

·       Whether overseas recruitment had yielded any positive outcomes and what the current picture was relating to retention of staff.  The Committee was advised that overseas scheme had been put on hold, but work was being taken forward with Health Education England regarding work issues and other initiatives to attract people into the profession.  It was also noted that programmes were being looked at and roles were being reviewed i.e., the roles of a therapist and hygienist being combined.

The Chairman on behalf of the Committee extended his thanks to the presenters.

RESOLVED

1.      That the information presented by NHS England and NHS Improvement on dental Services in Lincolnshire be noted.

2.      That a further update be received six months’ time, which should take on board the comments raised by the Committee.