Australia - 45%. Do we believe it?
No relief for dental pain
MADELINE HEALEY
September 29, 2006
PUBLIC dental patients in the south-west still face a wait of up to four-and-a-half years for treatment.This is despite an improvement since March when patients in Portland were facing a five-and-a-half-year wait.The longest wait in the district is now at Warrnambool where the waiting list is 55 months followed by Portland with a 52-month wait, Colac with 35 months and Hamilton on 26 months.Australian Dental Association Victorian branch president Greg Morris said the long waits meant that by the time dentists eventually saw patients their cavities had worsened.
``Dental decay is a progressive disease so it will just continue on with the cavities getting bigger. The situation can only get worse, not better.''
He said the problem wasn't just a shortage of dentists but a major shortage in funding. He said the association, with the Victorian Health Alliance, was lobbying the Government to contribute $83 million to improve the public dental system. ``We think there's a slight shortage in dentists but our main thrust is mainly funding, not dentists,'' he said. ``What we're seeking is basically an increased budget of $83.8 million with $43 million to be spent on waiting lists, $6 million on workforce shortages, $3 million on special needs and $32 million on preventative services.'' Mr Morris said the $43 million needed to be spent on providing more chairs, more clinics and more staff to support dentists and to help them work more efficiently. He said the $32 million needed to be spent educating children and adults about dental health and providing preventative measures such as fluoridation.
``Kids in areas with fluoride have 45 per cent less cavities than those in non-fluoridated areas,'' Mr Morris said. ``If you want to reduce the number of cavities then fluoridate.''
State Health Minister Bronwyn Pike said yesterday dental waiting lists had fallen by 58 per cent since December 2004. ``Ever since the Howard Government abolished the Commonwealth Dental Health Program soon after entering office in 1996, the states have struggled to make up for the lack of funding,'' she said.
MADELINE HEALEY
September 29, 2006
PUBLIC dental patients in the south-west still face a wait of up to four-and-a-half years for treatment.This is despite an improvement since March when patients in Portland were facing a five-and-a-half-year wait.The longest wait in the district is now at Warrnambool where the waiting list is 55 months followed by Portland with a 52-month wait, Colac with 35 months and Hamilton on 26 months.Australian Dental Association Victorian branch president Greg Morris said the long waits meant that by the time dentists eventually saw patients their cavities had worsened.
``Dental decay is a progressive disease so it will just continue on with the cavities getting bigger. The situation can only get worse, not better.''
He said the problem wasn't just a shortage of dentists but a major shortage in funding. He said the association, with the Victorian Health Alliance, was lobbying the Government to contribute $83 million to improve the public dental system. ``We think there's a slight shortage in dentists but our main thrust is mainly funding, not dentists,'' he said. ``What we're seeking is basically an increased budget of $83.8 million with $43 million to be spent on waiting lists, $6 million on workforce shortages, $3 million on special needs and $32 million on preventative services.'' Mr Morris said the $43 million needed to be spent on providing more chairs, more clinics and more staff to support dentists and to help them work more efficiently. He said the $32 million needed to be spent educating children and adults about dental health and providing preventative measures such as fluoridation.
``Kids in areas with fluoride have 45 per cent less cavities than those in non-fluoridated areas,'' Mr Morris said. ``If you want to reduce the number of cavities then fluoridate.''
State Health Minister Bronwyn Pike said yesterday dental waiting lists had fallen by 58 per cent since December 2004. ``Ever since the Howard Government abolished the Commonwealth Dental Health Program soon after entering office in 1996, the states have struggled to make up for the lack of funding,'' she said.
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