New dentist surgery to ease city toothache

Aug 22 2008 by Alison Anderson, Perthshire Advertiser Friday

A NEW dental surgery in Perth is planned to help meet the significant un-met demand for NHS dentistry in Perth and Kinross, writes Alison Anderson.

The partners in the long-established Caledonian Dental Care practice in York Place, John Cockburn and Mike San, hope their planning application to build a new dental practice in the nearby Kinnoull Causeway will find favour with Perth and Kinross Council.

The new two-storey practice proposed for a car parking area beside the Caledonian Medical Centre will operate in tandem with the York Place facility, which has accommodated a dental surgery since the 1940s.

Mike San explained: “John and I have been partners for the last 12 years and over that period we have developed the practice in York Place.

“We now have 12 dentists working in the practice and we are both trainers.

“We now feel we have developed the practice as much as possible at York Place, but we are still receiving about 100 unsolicited enquiries each week asking to register with us.

“When the land at Kinnoull Causeway came up for sale we purchased it and, all being well, we are looking to develop a six to eight surgery facility, mainly for NHS work with a private element to it.”

Mike said that the new surgery would require the practice to take on new dentist and auxiliary staff, adding to the current staffing of 12 dentists and nurses, four receptionists, three part-time hygienists and practice manager.

“Kinnoull Causeway is a good location and we would hope to have the new facility up and running by this time next year,” he added.