None of the 50 dental surgeries in Bristol listed on the NHS website are currently taking NHS patients. Results of a recent survey found that in the south west, 98 per cent of dentists were not taking on new NHS adult patients.
In Bristol, among those who are currently taking on new NHS patients, the majority are on a referral-only basis.
The few who are accepting NHS dental patients have not updated the details on the NHS website. One local dentist who did not want to be named said that there was no government incentive for dentists to want to work for the NHS due to lack of funding.
