A woman has said she was forced to pull out her teeth after waiting nearly seven years for an NHS dentist appointment.
Linda Colla, 76, began searching for a dentist when she moved to Nottingham from Devon in 2018 but was quickly disappointed as it proved more difficult than she thought.
She says she still hasn’t managed to get an appointment despite the self-administered operation as ‘local practices are not accepting new NHS patients’ and that she can’t afford to seek private treatment.
When three of her teeth become loose earlier this year, Ms Colla decided to take the plunge and extracted a total of two molars and one canine tooth herself in a ‘very painful’ DIY procedure.
The daring extractor recounted how the pain from loose teeth was impacting her ability to eat and that they were only getting ‘looser and looser’.
She explained: ‘I didn’t have any other option.
‘When I moved down here to the south west, that’s when the problems started.
‘I started looking for an NHS dentist, and couldn’t find one, so I phoned the NHS and they put me on the list.
Linda Colla, 76, began searching for a dentist when she moved to Nottingham from Devon in 2018 but it quickly proved more difficult than she thought
When three of her teeth become loose earlier this year, Ms Colla decided to take the plunge and extracted a total of two molars and one canine tooth herself in a ‘very painful’ DIY procedure
‘I’ve been here since April 2018, and I started looking for a dentist in June or July that year – and I’ve still not got one.
‘Three teeth started to work loose, and it was not very comfortable. It was painful to eat, so I had to pull them out.
‘They were getting looser and looser, so one at a time, I took them out.
‘It was two back teeth and a canine, and they had quite long roots. It was very painful – but I’ve apparently got a high pain tolerance.’
Ms Colla then had to fork out £300 for work on her dental plate in order to be able to eat again.
She says she would happily travel over 20 miles to see a dentist but has still had no luck.
Ms Colla hopes to find a dentist to maintain her dentures – as she says a new set would cost around £1500 if she saw a private dentist.
Now, she is sharing her story to raise awareness of the dental crisis she believes is facing the south-west of England.
The extractor hopes to find a dentist to maintain her dentures – as she says a new set would cost around £1500 if she saw a private dentist
‘I’ve been round local dentists, who have told me they can only take a certain amount of NHS patients due to funding, and they can’t take any more,’ she said.
‘The south west is in dire straits.
‘The NHS contacted me a couple of times and asked if I still want to be on the waiting list, and I said of course.
‘Six years later, as far as I know, I’m still on it.’