NZ - Dentists shunning Rotorua

Dentists shunning Rotorua
25.09.2007
By KRISTIN MacFARLANE
DENTISTS are in short supply in Rotorua because dental school graduates with hefty student loans are attracted to bigger money in larger cities and overseas.Rotorua's oral hygiene is among the worst in the country and dentists blame bad diets, smoking and the fact the city's water supply is not fluoridated.There is also a shortage of dentists which has led to an average waiting time for appointments of four to six weeks for secondary school students and adults. Even in an emergency, people are not seen immediately and there is no guarantee of being seen within a few days. Some people are referred to Tauranga and Taupo for faster treatment.Rotorua principals and dental health experts are calling for the city's water to be fluoridated as one way to protect the population's teeth, given the poor level of dental hygiene and the lack of services available.Their call is supported by Bay of Plenty Medical Officer of Health Dr Phil Shoemack who said if Rotorua children brushed their teeth twice a day, improved nutrition and regularly visited a dentist, their oral health would still be worse than elsewhere because the water in Rotorua was not fluoridated. He said fluoridation was the best way to improve oral health.There are 15 dentists working privately in Rotorua plus one community dentist at Tipu Ora and another supporting school dental services.Lakes District Health Board chairman Stewart Edward, who is also a dentist, said another four in the city would help reduce waiting times. In the last year, two dentists had died and one had moved to Australia. None was replaced.He acknowledged Rotorua's poor oral health was an issue that needed to be looked at and said it was due to bad, high sugar diets and smoking plus the fact the city's water supply was not fluoridated.He said fluoridation was a "no brainer" because it would improve oral health.Rotorua currently had a full complement of dental therapists for its 21 clinics but finding replacements when needed could be difficult."The number of people training in dental therapy has dropped in recent years and many of the dental therapists employed are in their late 40s or 50s."Many dentists and therapists in Rotorua were likely to retire in the next 5-10 years, Mr Edward said. [New] graduates were not coming through because other, larger, centres were more attractive.Studying to become a dental therapist or dentist costs an estimated $16,000 to $33,000 and with such big loans to repay, graduates headed elsewhere where they could earn more money. Not all later returned to New Zealand.