Orthodontic referrals for braces Liverpool are not uncommon, but they can be quite complicated and don’t always go right. We’ve put together this brief guide to help you through the journey to access the treatment you and your family need.
How care is structured
One of the reasons why referrals exist at all is because of the fundamental way that care is on a hierarchical system. In the same way as there is primary care and secondary care in between GPs in clinics and consultants in hospitals, there is a similar system in dentistry, with general high street dentists acting as primary care providers and specialists like us at Liverpool Smile Studio offering more intense and tailored treatments but to a smaller range of conditions, like our braces Liverpool.
So, when a complicated case comes into a local clinic and they do not have the equipment or expertise to handle it well, they are likely to refer it to a known and trusted specialist, like us. We have several clinics that we work with and often receive referrals from.
Tracking and chasing up referrals
Tracking the dental referral management system is the primary way that the NHS manages patient referrals; it is an outsourced organisation staffed with dental consultants who have been tasked with prioritising care and reducing waiting times. This ensures that treatment is promptly issued before conditions worsen.
Such patients are occasionally sent to clinics relatively far from their homes and may end up being seen in strictly private surgeries as an attempt to relieve pressure on waiting lists.
After receiving a referral, we make an assessment based on the notes and any provided x-rays from your dentist. We will then decide as to whether or not we can manage your case, which we usually can.
Although there has been a significant improvement to the previous system, it is not perfect and occasionally referrals have to be chased up. When your dentist makes a referral to us, they will be provided with a URN (unique referral number). This URN can be used to chase up a referral with us if we are experiencing delays and is also useful for us to keep track of the condition if it is progressive and the waiting time is extensive.
Self-funding options
If you require braces Liverpool and the waiting lists are inappropriate, there is the option of self-funding in our clinic, either with our surgery’s dental plan or our 0% interest credit options.
Our dental plan allows a full range of general care, orthodontic care and even dental implant procedures to be changed from substantial one-off payments to a consistent, affordable monthly subscription. This takes much of the pressure off your finances in the short-term and allows greater care options when you require it, without the looming concern of costs limiting how you invest in yourself and leading to short-term inadequate solutions.
Our dental plan can be used as complementary to NHS services, minimising the amount you have to pay and only making use of our clinic to plug some of the gaps in treatment generated by growing waiting lists.
All applications are subject to a credit check, and interest rates are variable by status.