News

GP Patient Survey Dental Statistics; January to March 2012, England

Due to a number of changes to the questionnaire and survey methodology, it is not possible to make direct comparisons of the dental results below with the previous results, even where questions remain the same.

For more information on these changes see the GP Patient Survey website

In the most recent period (January to March 2012), 1.4 million adults were asked about access to NHS dentistry in the previous two years. Participants were asked if they had tried to obtain an appointment with an NHS dentist, and if so, whether it was with a practice they had been to before and had they been successful. They were also asked what their overall experience was of NHS dentistry.  Patients who hadn’t tried to obtain an NHS dentist in the previous two years were asked to select the main reason why they hadn’t tried.

The results from the survey responses are presented here at national (England), Strategic Health Authority (SHA) and Primary Care Trust (PCT) level.

Main results:

  • 510,000 responses, 38% of the 1.4 million people contacted.
  • 60% of adults in the survey tried to obtain an appointment with an NHS dentist in the two year period prior to answering the question in January to March 2012.
  • 93% of respondents who tried to obtain an appointment within the past two years said they were successful (a success rate of 95%, when excluding those who didn’t remember the outcome).
  • Respondents who tried more recently were more successful. 95% of respondents trying within the past three months and within the past six months stated they were successful (96% success rate excluding can’t remember respondents).
  • 85% of respondents tried to make an appointment with a dental practice they had previously attended. Of those who went on to answer whether they successfully made the appointment, 97% stated they did
  • For the 12% of patients who sought appointments with a new dental practice in the last two years, 77% were successful, 21% were unsuccessful and 3% couldn’t remember the outcome; 
  • North East SHA area had the largest percentage of the adult population seeking an NHS dental appointment in the last two years, at 67%, whilst South Central SHA had the smallest, where 53% sought an NHS appointment.
  • Success in getting an appointment. North East SHA and East of England SHA had the largest percentage, with 95% stating they were successful over the last two years. London SHA had the lowest percentage with 89%.
  • For patients seeking an appointment in the last two years at a practice they had not been to before, East of England had the largest percentage successful, with 82%, Yorkshire and Humber had the smallest (69%).
Overall Experience of NHS Dentistry:

  • 83% of respondents rated their overall experience as positive (47% very good and 37% fairly good).
  • This increased to 87% when looking at those who had been to the practice before, compared to 63% for those who were new to the practice.
Adults who have not tried to get an NHS appointment in the last two years:

  • 40% of respondents did not try to get an appointment with an NHS dentist in the last two years.
  • The most frequent reason was ‘Not needed to visit a dentist’, which was mentioned by 19.3% of adults not trying for an NHS dental appointment in the previous two years.
  • This followed closely by ‘Stayed with their dentist when changed from NHS to private’, with 19.2% and ‘I prefer to go to a private dentist’ with 19.0% of the share.

Further breakdowns of these figures can be found in the summary tables below, together with a copy of the results from the dental section of the survey.

For full results of the GP Patient Survey and the questions used, see the GP Patient Survey website.

Download data

Summary tables: GP Patient Survey Dental Statistics Jan-Mar 2012 (XLS, 1234K)

Question Responses (CSV, 51K)

1. Success in getting an NHS dental appointment at SHA and PCT level (CSV, 23K)

2. Success by age and by gender at SHA and PCT level (CSV, 32K)

3. Success by ethnicity and by work status at SHA level (CSV, 7K)

4. Success by ethnicity and by work status at PCT level (CSV, 27K)

5. Success by whether it is a practice they have been to before at SHA and PCT level (CSV, 12K)

6. Overall experience of NHS dental services (CSV, 6K)

7. Reason for not trying to get an NHS dental appointment (CSV, 29K)

Archive – Previous GP Patient Survey Dental results

Pre-release access list
 Dental Pre release list
Contacts

To contact the Media Centre, please refer to the Department of Health’s website for the relevant contact  details: Media Centre Contact Details