AN ANGRY father today criticised a dental surgery for refusing to book his five-year-old daughter in for treatment unless he paid a failed appointment fee up front.

Little Kelsey Stirling has a painful abcess on one tooth and a cavity in another and was referred to Lees and Austin's dental surgery on Preston New Road, Blackburn, by her own dentist Mr Saravanamuttu, of Railway Road.

But when her dad Ian took her along to the surgery to book in for an extraction and a filling under anasthetic he said the receptionist refused to make an appointment unless Ian paid a £10 failed appointment fee.

Ian of Carnforth Road, Blackburn, said: "I couldn't believe it. My dentist had made the appointment for us to go up there for a consultation and I presume he didn't have to pay a fee, so when the receptionist asked me for £10 I was shocked.

"There was a woman in front of me in the queue who was crying at the reception desk and now I know why. I didn't have any money on me to pay £10 so they wouldn't make an appointment for Kelsey, even though she is in pain and on antibiotics. "I understand that dentists do have problems with people missing appointments and if they don't turn up it is right they should be charged, but not before they even make the appointment.

"If I had had £10 in my pocket to pay this fee the surgery would have had my money for two or three weeks until the day they had fitted Kelsey in, it isn't right.

"I've never failed an appointment in my life and I object to this fee, but there is nobody else in the area who does general anaesthetic and it looks like I will have to bite the bullet and pay because Kelsey needs treatment, and anyway I would probably end up paying £10 in petrol driving to another dentist further afield.

"If Lees' is the only surgery in this area that does this treatment then I think the NHS is lacking."

Dentist Chris Lees said the refundable failed appointment fee has been standard practice in his surgery for some time because of the high numbers of people who don't turn up.

He said: "We are the only surgery in this area that does extractions under general anaesthetic and so we have had to invest a lot of time and money in staff training and equipment.

"People who want dental treatment under anaesthetic are by nature quite timid, so what has happened in the past is that they have come for a consultation and made an appointment for treatment then their toothache goes away and they don't turn up on the day. "Sometimes we have had eight people out of 20 appointments not turn up in just one day, so that is why we asked for this fee which is returned when the patients come for their treatment.

"If people don't have £10 we will accept £5 or they can come in again later in the day and it shouldn't affect their appointment time. The onus is on the referring dentist to tell the patient about this fee."

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