Practice Policies

Failed to attend and short notice cancellation policy

Cancelling appointments:

You are required to give us at least 24 hrs notice when cancelling or rebooking appointments. If you have two or more occasions of short notice cancellation, you run the risk of no longer receiving clinical care at this practice (dentist discretion applies). We will send you a letter notifying you of this. It is very important for us to make appropriate use of the clinical time to help patients in the need of dental care.

Late arrivals and failing to attend:

We may be unable to see you if you arrive late for your appointment.  You will be able to rebook your appointment, subject to your dentist’s discretion.  If you have two or more occasions of late arrival, you run the risk of being of no longer receiving clinical care at this practice (dentist discretion applies). We will send you a letter notifying you of this.

If you fail to attend your appointment without notifying the practice, you are able to contact the practice to rebook, subject to your dentist’s discretion.  Please note: after two failed to attend appointments/short notice cancellations/combination of both within one year, you will automatically no longer receive clinical care at this practice (dentist discretion applies).  We will send you a letter notifying you of this.  Please note, the dentist has the discretion to no longer provide clinical care to a patient even after one single failed/short notice cancelled appointment subject to the length of the appointment.

Then you are advised to either go onto the NHS website, or call NHS 111 who will help you to find an alternate dentist or you may wish to contact the Patient Advisory Liaison Service (PALS) on 0845 601 5890 to find an alternative dental practice for any dental emergency and the continuity of the dental care.

Deposit and payment Policy

At Denpure we will require a deposit when you book an appointment. This will be deducted from your bill for the relevant treatment at your next visit. We understand that things sometimes come up and that you may need to make changes to your appointment. We will always be as flexible as possible with our patients, that’s why the deposit will be refunded if you subsequently cancel the appointment with more than 24 hours’ notice. We may request all the payments for the treatment to be cleared before the final visit.

However, we reserve the right to retain your deposit in case of late cancellations (any cancellation with less than 24 hours’ notice) or late arrivals which result in us not being able to see you. This results in the wastage of valuable clinical time which could have been utilised to treat other patients in the urgent need of dental care.

We will always try to be sensitive to personal circumstances in the event of late cancellations/late arrivals (subject to discretion of the clinician).

Deposit and Cancellation Fee Structure:

• For treatment amounting up to £250.00, we will take a £35.00 deposit.
• For treatment amounting up to £500.00, we will take a £50.00 deposit.
• For treatment amounting more than £500.00, we will take a £75.00 deposit.
• For complex treatments such as implants, Invisalign or endodontics the deposit required for each appointment may vary from clinician to clinician, depending on the stage of the treatment and type of appointment. Full details will be given throughout the treatment plans.

Late Cancellation/Failed to attend Fee for hygienist appointments:

• £20 deposit is required to book appointment with the hygienist, we reserve the right to retain this deposit in the case of late cancellation/ failed to attend, You will be required to pay an additional £20.00 deposit should you wish to rebook with the hygienist.

Denpure Dental Care & Implant Centre comprehensive procedure and policy on:

• Joining the practice
• Booking appointments
• Emergency appointments
• Cancelling appointments
• Late arrivals, short notice cancellation and failing to attend
• Permanent discontinuity of care at the practice

Joining Denpure Dental Practice:

If you would like to join as an NHS patient at Denpure Dental Practice, please contact the practice to see if we are accepting new NHS patients.

If we are unable to see you under the NHS, you can go onto the NHS website or call NHS 111 who will help you find an NHS dentist. Or you may wish to contact the Patient Advisory Liaison Service on 0845 601 5890 to find an alternative dental practice.

If you would like to join as a private patient, you will need to fill out a patient form which we can email to you upon request, or you are welcome to collect the form from the practice.  Once we have the completed form back from you, we will sign you up and offer you an appointment.

Please note: We are unable to book any appointments until we have received your completed patient form and we are unable to offer extended or extra appointments before you have had your initial consultation.  If you fail to attend your initial appointment or fail to give at least 24 hours’ notice of cancellation, we will no longer be able to provide you any clinical care at this practice and we will notify you this in writing, with details on how to find an alternative dental practice.

Booking appointments:

You are able to book appointments by calling the practice on 01895 678889, emailing us at info@denpure.co.uk, or visiting the practice in person

*Please note: we are unable to advise you of anyone else’s appointment(s) that they may have booked here at Denpure, unless we have a Letter of Authority signed and/or you are the parent or legal guardian of a child 16 yrs. or under.

Emergency appointments:

If you have a dental emergency and you are a patient who has attended the practice within the last 2 years, then please contact the surgery on 01895 678889 during our working hours (Mon-Fri: 9AM to 5.30PM, Sat: 8.30AM to 12PM. Closed on Sun and Bank Holidays).

Appointments will be made for the same day, where possible.  Appointments are booked on a first come first served basis and we therefore cannot guarantee an emergency appointment for the same day. Please be aware that some emergencies are double booked with existing appointments so we cannot predict the waiting time. If you have a genuine dental emergency outside of our working hours, please call 111.

Cancelling appointments:

You are required to give us at least 24 hrs notice when cancelling or rebooking appointments.

Late arrivals and failing to attend:

We may be unable to see you if you are more than 10 minutes late to your appointment.  You will be able to rebook your appointment, subject to your dentist’s discretion.  If you have two or more occasions of late arrival, you run the risk of no longer receiving clinical care at this practice (dentist discretion applies). We will send you a letter notifying you of this.

If you fail to attend your appointment without notifying the practice, you can contact the practice to rebook, subject to your dentist’s discretion.  Please note: after two failed to attend appointments/short notice cancellations within one year, you will automatically no longer be able to receive any clinical care from the practice.  We will send you a letter notifying you of this.  Please note, the dentist has the discretion to no longer provide clinical care to a patient even after one single failed/ short notice cancelled appointment (subject to the length of the appointment).

Permanent discontinuity of care at the practice:

All patients are advised by the clinicians at the end of their appointment to book their next recall as per NICE Guidelines (National institute of Clinical excellence) (https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg19/chapter/Recommendations). Patients are responsible to book that recall appointment as advised by their clinician for the continuity of the care here at Denpure.

If you as a patient do not attend/book for your dental assessment/examination/check-up as advised within the maximum period of 2 years (as suggested by NICE guidelines) then we will not be able to offer any future dental care here at Denpure.

Patients will not be notified of their lapse status; they are responsible for their own health and are strongly advised and encouraged to book their dental check-up after they see the clinician as they are advised.  Once lapsed the time period of 24 months, as per practice policy, you permanently lose the entitlement of being seen and treated here at Denpure.

We cannot guarantee you will receive notifications via texts, emails, letters or phone calls prompting you to book your recall appointments.  However, Denpure will actively encourage every patient to book their recall appointment(s) when the patient is physically at the practice after completion of their current check up and/or treatment.

You can go onto the NHS website, call NHS 111 or contact the Patient Advisory Liaison Service (PALS) on 0845 601 5890 to find an alternative dental practice for the continuity of care.

What do you need to do:

Always attend any appointment booked, or cancel the appointment giving more than 24 hours’ notice.

Make sure you book your next dental examination before you leave the practice as advised by the clinician (three, six, nine or even twelve months in advance), our reception team will help you make your next appointment and send you reminders nearer the time. Please note: these reminders will be sent via text and/or email so we need your up-to-date details.  These reminders are also complementary, and cannot be solely relied on.  The patient is ultimately responsible for remembering their appointment.

Check and update your contact details. Be sure they are correct, especially your email address and mobile phone (if you have one). If we can keep in touch with you, then we can help you stay on track so you do not miss your appointment(s). If you have not booked an appointment, please contact the practice to make an appointment at your earliest convenience.

Repeated failed to attend/short notice cancelled appointments will result in the patient no longer being provided with clinical care from the practice.

Please remember, it is very important to attend the practice for oral health assessment at the interval advised by the clinician (following NICE guidelines). The patient is ultimately responsible for keeping and maintaining their oral health here at Denpure Dental Care & Implant Centre.