A LACK of up-to-date information is hampering patients' efforts to access NHS dental care in Cheshire, a report has revealed.

Watchdog Healthwatch Cheshire East has found an increase in queries regarding dentistry during the pandemic, mostly regarding the outdated information on the NHS Services website.

The irrelevant information means that people are forced to contact individual dental practices and ask whether they are accepting NHS patients.

Another common query is the treatment received at emergency dentists, with problems fixed quickly for the short term, but patients are then left still needing proper dentistry service yet are often unable to make appointments due to waiting lists at NHS dentists

A Sandbach resident, who had struggled for over two months to find an NHS dentist accepting new patients, said: "I've looked in several towns in Cheshire East; I live in Sandbach, but work in Macclesfield and Crewe, but to no avail and my tooth is getting worse.

"I saw an emergency dentist as I ended up with an abscess but as the tooth still hasn't been fixed it's started to flare up again and I need to sort the problem not just get more antibiotics as [I am ] just going round in circles."

Confusion around access has been a problem in the NHS for some time. While some people find it easier to register with dentists overseas, others are offered appointments in a few months, but some are told to simply keep calling and hope their number gets picked next.

Alongside this, confusion around dentist registration appears to be growing. Some patients have had their registration cancelled due to "inactivity" and will have to re-register and hope that they don't have a dental issue until then.

The Cheshire and Merseyside dental helpline is also experiencing strain. Without appointments or any actual treatment being received from this helpline, patients are growing frustrated with the issue.

"Perhaps someone could explain to me why it's called an emergency treatment line, yet there is no urgency or indeed appointments? It's supposed to be a triage help line, absolute joke," said one person quoted in the report.

See Healthwatch Cheshire East's website.