SUPERMARKET DENTIST !

Sainsbury's launches Britain's first supermarket dentist... and it's open seven days a week

A dentist has filled a cavity in the market by opening a surgery in a Sainsbury's store.

And with some treatment prices undercutting the NHS, the new practice, which offers everything from a check-up and polish to a root canal filling, has been swamped with patients eager to register.

Sainsbury's agreed to the pilot scheme in Sale, Greater Manchester, because there are thousands of patients who want to register with an NHS dentist but cannot find a surgery willing to take on new clients. Other surgeries are expected to open at stores around the country.

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Open wide: Dr Lance Knight examines a patient at the first dental surgery inside a Sainsbury's store in Sale, Greater Manchester

Dr Lance Knight, who runs the practice, says it promises shoppers professional and cost-effective treatments seven days a week.

The dentist, who already runs several private surgeries in Manchester, said he was acting in response to demands for competitively priced treatment.

'We're simplifying the pricing structure so people know what the costs will be and we're keeping the cost similar to NHS prices so we're relying on local people to support us, but from the feedback we've had so far we think this could revolutionise dentistry in this country.'

New contracts were brought in by the Government in 2006 which essentially capped the fees dentists could charge patients for treatment.

Many dentists decided to go private as a direct result leading to a massive shortage of NHS dentists nationwide.

The dental crisis led to massive queues of would-be patients stretching down the streets every time a new NHS dentist decided to open up a surgery.