Dental practices in Wales reportedly ‘operating at less than a quarter of capacity’
NewsPosted by: Dental Design 7th August 2020
ITV News is reporting that dental practices are ‘operating at less than a quarter of capacity’ in Wales and that they will not be operating fully until ‘at least October’ according to some claims.
The report states that while services at dental surgeries across Wales are able to resume, as lockdown restrictions have been eased, stringent guidelines have made it difficult for them to operate fully. The Welsh Government allowed dental practices to resume from 1 July, however, a “phased approach” was taken due to the fact that, in some procedures, the risk of cross-infection is high due to the transfer of saliva.
Professor Mike Lewis told ITV News that this is why dentistry was going to be one of the areas of medicine that is going to “find it very difficult to return to normal because of the aerosol generation.”
Dental practices in England could fully resume on 8 June, while practices in Wales are currently operating under an ‘amber light’ in which some, but not all, procedures can resume.
A spokesperson for the British Dental Association said: ” The green status, where routine care returns, is unlikely to be reached till October at the earliest. Both nations are operating fallow time and maintaining 60 minute gaps between patients to reduce risk of viral transmission. This is a major barrier to access for all. It is not a return to business as usual in either nation. Most practices are operating at less than a quarter of their pre-pandemic capacity.”
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