In three weeks, the national dental care program will expand to include children and people with disabilities. But as the plan ramps up, it’s unclear if demand will be met in B.C.
Dr. Robert Wolanski, president of the BC Dental Association (BCDA), says there are about 4,000 dentists province-wide, however, not everyone is on board.
“We don’t know what the exact number is … but it probably looks like 20 per cent of dentists. Is that enough people? It depends in which area. In some of the urban centres, like Vancouver, probably yes. In some of the rural areas, it might be a bit more challenging.”
He says it’s not on the association to pressure dentists to sign up.
“Ultimately, that decision is the decision specifically of the dentist to participate or not. We cannot tell dentists to participate or not, that would be an anti-competition issue. Our advice is for them to make that decision for themselves.”
Wolanski, who has a practice in Nanaimo, says the roll-out of the program has been anything but smooth.
“It’s been challenging for both the association and dentists. Some dentists, whether they’re a young dentist or they’re still building their practice, they might be more inclined to participate because they will have space. Some dentists who are fully booked would find it challenging to add this into their practice.”
He stresses an ongoing staffing shortage is adding another layer of complexity.
“This program comes with a number of extra features that require a little bit more time for front-end staff to work. With all industries right now, we’re all struggling with having the manpower and the personnel hours to deal with it. In an office that’s short-staffed, it’ll be very challenging.”
Wolanski says some patients, who are currently enrolled in the program, aren’t clear on what’s covered and have been taking their anger out on various dental offices.
“This is one of the challenges we’ve had with the messaging from the government, publicly, is they’ve consistently sent the message out that this program is going to be no-cost.
“That messaging, because it’s not accurate or truthful, has led to an expectation. A lot of patients have been coming into the office, expecting everything to be covered and it’s not and some of them are quite shocked and upset to hear that. It’s not our program, it’s the federal government’s program.”
He says they want it to work in the long run but says it’s nowhere near perfect.
“The BCDA and all provincial/territorial dental associations are trying to provide Health Canada with the best expert advice about how to best shape the program, so it works for both patients and providers. Dentists certainly want this program to work, and we support the reason for the initiative, but the challenge is the program itself,” explains Wolanski. “This whole initiative was a political initiative.”
Wolanski says as issues are ironed out, he is flagging a problem with privacy in the program.
“Patients aren’t aware that by signing up with the program, their records and medical records can be requested by an insurance company and, specifically within the language of the agreement, there is no directive to allow dentists to specifically do that. Our concern is the liability that puts on the practitioner if records are released, and the patient is really not aware of that.”
He says if you’ve signed up or are planning to sign up, call your dentist’s office ahead of time to see if they’re part of the program and if they’ll meet your needs, otherwise, you may have to go elsewhere.
The program launched last month and included seniors 70 and older. Coverage is based on a sliding scale of your income.
–With files from Michael Williams