Dental Treatment

Types of patients regularly seen

Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust's dental service sees adults and children with additional needs (including but not limited to physical, intellectual, medical, emotional, sensory, mental or social impairments or a combination of these factors) and who are unable to accept routine dental care. These patients are referred to the service by dentists, GPs, other healthcare professionals, social care representatives and residential care home workers.

The service also sees patients requiring treatment under general anaesthetic, IV or inhalation sedation (laughing gas).

The service sees patients who are housebound, or in a nursing home or in long term hospital care, for example because of physical, medical, mental and learning disabilities. This service is also provided on referral to the service by dentists, GPs, other healthcare professionals, social care representatives, residential care home workers or self referral, in the case of patients requiring domiciliary visits.

The service sees patients who require urgent treatment for:

• Severe facial swelling and dental trauma
• Dental and soft tissue infection
• Severe dental or facial pain not controlled by over-the-counter preparations.

Patients not seen by this service

The service does not see patients who require specialist oral surgery, specialist restorative dentistry or orthodontic treatment.

The service also does not see patients who wish to have private treatments or cosmetic dentistry, example tooth whitening.