New NHS dental clinic proposal for Inverness city centre
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Inverness could be set to gain a new dental clinic to counter current dire shortages in NHS treatment if a planning application succeeds.
Skye dentist Dr Zahid Ahmad, of Portree Dental Care, is seeking the permission of Highland Council planners to convert an office in the city into a dentists’ practice.
A lack of availability of NHS provision has created a crisis in dentistry in the Inverness area, with patients forced to travel to surrounding Highland towns such as Invergordon and Tain to avoid paying for private treatment.
The new premises would be located at 24 Bank Street, on the east side of the River Ness.
In planning papers, Dr Ahmad says his proposal fits with Scotland-wide plans to improve access to NHS dentists.
Similar shortages in NHS provision have been experienced across the UK with The British Dental Association (BDA) recently claiming radical change was needed to prevent a collapse in the system.
Dr Ahmed states in his planning submission: “The proposal involves utilising the existing building for a dental practice in line with the Scottish Government’s initiative to improve access to NHS dentistry in Inverness.
“The building has been identified as suitable for this purpose without the need for any internal or external modifications.
“The only required action is to request a change of class from its current classification, class 4, to a suitable classification for a dental practice, which is class 1.”
The premises at 24 Bank Street is a listed building, attached to Dr Black’s Memorial Hall, which houses a performing arts school.
It also skirts the riverside car park of the Mercure Hotel.
The premises were recently fully refurbished.
