More than 100 people queue for NHS place at MyDentist in Westbrook

People brought camp chairs to pitch up on as they waited for hours outside MyDentist in Westbrook.

This was after the practice sent out an email informing residents that it will be accepting 20 NHS registrations once a month on a first come, first served basis.

The dental practice, which is based at Westbrook Centre, said that to secure a place, people must attend the practice on the day in person.

The message reads: “The practice opens at 9am, however we have patients arrive much sooner than that to register (we usually have a queue, sometimes from as early as 6am).

“As registration is on first come, first served basis, once the first 20 patients have been registered, we cannot register anyone else until the following month.”

The message received by residents (Image: Supplied)

The registration day was on Monday of this week.

One resident told the Warrington Guardian how she arrived at the practice at 7.45am that morning to be told by a member of the public that people were being sent away from the queue.

She was told that people had been queuing since 2.30am and that as of 7.30am, there were more than 100 people in the queue despite the practice only being able to take on 20 new patients.

The resident said: “How is this acceptable? How does MyDentist think this is ok?

“There were elderly people in the queue!”

The Warrington Guardian contacted MyDentist about the situation. A spokesperson said that the practice initially felt that the first come, first served basis was the fairest way, however it is now looking into introducing a waiting list.

“Our practice team is doing everything possible to support more patients in getting access to NHS dental care, despite the significant shortage of NHS dentists across the country,” a spokesperson said.

 “As such, we are seeing unprecedented demand for the limited new NHS appointments that are available. Initially, we felt the fairest way to offer these places was on a first come first served basis.

“However, we are now looking to introduce a waiting list to manage this process and will keep patients updated as soon as that has launched.”

A spokesperson for NHS Cheshire and Merseyside added: “We’re aware of the challenges around accessing NHS dental services in Warrington, which are also being seen across the country.

“Building on the NHS’s reforms to dentistry – the first since 2006 - we’re working with dental practices to explore how NHS dental services can be provided across Cheshire and Merseyside.

“Urgent dental care access is available seven days a week. Anyone who is in dental pain or in urgent need of support, help or advice, can contact the Cheshire and Merseyside dental helpline on 0161 476 9651(standard local telephone charges apply).”