I’m sure that we have all experienced or heard stories of the impact that difficulties on our dental healthcare system are having on patients.

Far too frequently, we have seen stories of people being forced to go private, or even removing their own teeth in desperation.

The Welsh Government have proposed some further changes to NHS dental contracts in Wales, and I have to say I am incredibly concerned by them.

Under the proposed changes, patients could be moved between dental surgeries, across the Health Board area to receive treatment, rather than having one surgery handling their treatment.

This means that a patient in Chepstow might be asked to go to an early morning appointment in Brynmawr, which will be incredibly difficult for many elderly or vulnerable patients.

This policy may be manageable in larger cities, but it will pose a significant challenge for people in rural communities.

The proposed changes also suggest extending the interval between check-ups from the current 6 to 12 month back to 18 to 24 months.

This simply cannot be in the best interest of patients in Wales.

The fact is, the Welsh Government’s reforms continue to make the situation worse here in Wales.

I have written to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care outlining my concerns about these changes and have urged the Government to ensure that any changes do not negatively impact patients.

I firmly believe that these changes will not benefit patients at all, in fact it will only make things worse. Dentists across Wales have also shared their concerns.

The British Dental Association has warned that more NHS contracts could be handed back if these changes go ahead.

This is not the first time the association has been critical of the Welsh Government’s approach to the handling of dentistry having previously accused the Welsh Government of “half-truths.”

At the end of the day, these changes are going to have a profound impact on patient welfare and I hope the Welsh Government listens to the concerns of patients and dentists across Wales.