While many other Scots struggle to access a National Health Service dentist, Glasgow’s health board has launched Scotland’s first practice for the homeless, which aims to treat 4,000 people a year.
It argues that improving the appearance of the destitute will help their job prospects, improve their chances of finding decent housing and go some way to improving their health. It follows a study that found high levels of tooth decay among the homeless, 30% of whom have no teeth.
The move has proved controversial because more than 40,000 Scottish patients fell off NHS dental lists last year, a fact the British Dental Association blames on a drop in places available at practices across the country.
Many dentists have left the NHS in favour of private practice, claiming the Scottish executive does not pay nearly enough to make NHS work worthwhile.
People who live on the street and in hostels will be offered a wide range of free treatment, including veneers that normally cost about £100 each to conceal discoloured teeth.
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Alice Docherty of the Glasgow Homeless Partnership, a joint initiative between the NHS in Glasgow and the city council, said that treating bad teeth would improve people’s lives.
“Improving someone’s smile can help that person’s job prospects, their chances of finding decent housing and of building relationships,” she said.
Supporters of the scheme say research has shown homeless people have difficulty getting good dental services as a result of their unsettled lifestyles, alcohol and drug addiction.
“If you don’t know if you’re going to be able to eat that night, or wake up the next morning safely, then making sure you’ve got your toothpaste and floss isn’t high on your list of priorities,” said Abigail Heffernan, one of the dentists based at the new practice in Partick.
Eddie McQuade, a 32-year-old who was homeless for about six years and now lives in a flat, is among the first to have benefited.
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“I’m a lot more confident now that I’ve got my smile back. I feel like a new me,” he said.
“Getting all the work done by the dentist here has coincided with a time when I feel I am getting back on my feet in other parts of my life and I think one helps the other.”
But Murdo Fraser, the Scottish Tory deputy leader, voiced reservations about the scheme.
“There are tens of thousands of people across Scotland who want access to NHS dentists and cannot get it. It seems to be going too far to offer cosmetic treatment to a very small group when resources are so limited,” he said.