Refugees going back to Ukraine and people pulling own teeth out amid NHS shortages, minister says

Patients are pulling their teeth out and Ukrainian refugees are flying back to the war-torn country for appointments amid a lack of NHS dentistry services, Wes Streeting has said.

It comes after a seven-year-old Ukrainian girl and her mother flew to Poland and took a 15-hour bus across Ukraine for dental treatment because the NHS waiting list was so long.

A British Dental Association survey of 500 UK dentists found that “DIY” dentistry is “rampant” - 82 per cent of respondents said they have treated patients who have taken matters into their own hands since lockdown.

The BDA said “DIY dentistry” could be any form of DIY dental care, from a simple filling kit to an attempt at extraction.