Residents in the north of the Isle of Man are set to get better access to NHS dental care, with a new service opening at Ramsey and District Cottage Hospital on Monday 9 November.

Manx Care confirmed the opening date on Saturday, after the launch was delayed by a week because of minor storm damage to the building. The service will initially be delivered by a salaried dentist, and recruitment is already under way for a second dentist to expand capacity further and cut waiting times.

Who gets appointments first

Appointments will initially go to northern residents who are currently on the NHS dental waiting list, unregistered patients who need emergency treatment, and Smile Dental patients who need urgent or emergency care while that practice resumes its routine services.

Manx Care said eligible patients on the waiting list will be contacted directly and do not need to get in touch with the service themselves.

A welcome boost for the north

A Manx Care spokesperson said the opening of the dental unit in Ramsey would provide additional NHS dental capacity for the north and help support people who are currently waiting to access dental care.

The spokesperson added that although the opening had unfortunately been delayed by damage to the building during recent stormy weather, the service would now begin seeing patients from Monday 9 November.

The service was first announced in October, when Manx Care said a dentist would begin seeing patients at the cottage hospital from the week beginning 2 November. The storm delay pushed that start back by seven days, but the plan itself is unchanged: a Manx Care-run unit, based at the hospital, serving the north of the island first.

Sources: - source2_name: Apex News | source2_link: https://www.apexnews.com/en/news/nhs-dental-services-to-return-to-ramsey-4f1fb3de261023en_zz

[Source: Manx.News](https://www.manx.news/norths-new-nhs-dental-service-opens-next-week/) | [Source: Apex News](https://www.apexnews.com/en/news/nhs-dental-services-to-return-to-ramsey-4f1fb3de261023en_zz)