A Canberra dentist has described Australia's dental system as broken and failing to improve health outcomes despite an increasing number of practitioners.
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Rick Luu, who has been working in the industry for more than 15 years, said more Australians were visiting the dentist each year although health outcomes were inconsistent.
"The public's perception of dentistry and dental health has driven the trend for quick and cheap dentistry," he said.
"What most patients don't realise before it's too late is that cheap and rushed dentistry is not good dentistry or even good for your teeth."
According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, close to 30 per cent of adults avoid visiting a dentist due to cost.
"There has been a recent growth in the supply of dental practitioners that may have an influence on the availability of dental care across the population," an AIHW report said.
"Between 2011 and 2012 the number of dental practitioners employed increased from around 18, 700 to nearly 19,600."
Dr Luu said dental costs were often unexpected, meaning many are unable to budget for appointments. He said the Medicare Benefits Scheme was also encouraging doctors to prescribe tests that have little value.
"This is similar to the way the dental industry is incentivised by private health funds and item numbers – the more numbers, the more rebates," he said.
Despite Dr Luu's concerns, government reports paint a more favourable picture for those living in the territory. According to the latest ACT Health annual report, the number of children with decayed, missing or filled teeth was half the national rate.
The mean waiting time for clients also fallen below the target goal of six months to four months.
"This was due to increased funding from the Commonwealth for the 'Treating More Public Dental Patients' National Partnership Agreement'," the report said.
"The dental health program has been able to maintain shorter waiting times by referring extra clients to private dental services and employing additional clinical staff."
More than 280,000 dental procedures were performed during 2014-15 in the ACT. Dentists provided 20,462 fillings and 6732 scales and cleans. There are currently 22 dentists registered with ACT Health, 16 females and six males.
The annual performance was detailed as new research finds acids in sugar-free drinks are just as bad for dental health as sugared alternatives.Scientists at the University of Melbourne tested 23 different types of drinks and found those high in acids like citric and phosphoric acids caused "measurable damage to dental enamel", even if they were sugar-freeAccording to research by the ACT Heart Foundation, about 30,000 adults in the ACT are guzzling more than 23 kilograms of sugar a year by sipping on sugary soft drinks every day.
