Private Havant dentist donates thousands of pieces of protective gear to QA Hospital after CQC tells him to close emergency centre

Amir Moughadam, owner of the Havant Implant Centre at Prince George Dental, sent 200 surgical gowns, 1,000 masks and 1,000 pairs of gloves to the Cosham site in a taxi.

The gear was rendered surplus after the CQC told the 56-year-old to close his practice on Tuesday, having re-opened a day earlier to provide free emergency care to anyone in serious pain.

Mr Moughadam told The News last week he hoped the move would ease pressure on QA Hospital’s A&E department as its nurses and doctors battle the coronavirus outbreak.

But after rapidly recruiting three dental assistants and a receptionist who volunteered to fight his cause, the operation was shut down after 28 patients were seen.

Seven of these had troublesome teeth removed while another 62 experiencing serious pain, who were booked to attend the practice later in the week, have now been told to stay at home.

It comes after the British Dental Association previously told practices to close for all but emergency care to fight the spread of coronavirus.

Mr Moughadam said: ‘The CQC told me they really appreciate what I’m doing but said they weren’t asking me, but telling me, I have to close because every dentist has to.

‘I bought the equipment and I got the volunteers because I felt like my job was to help my country at this difficult time – I don’t care about the money.

‘But at the end of the day, everybody has a boss and mine is the CQC.

‘I’m a very small part in a big machine and they have their reasons. I respect that.’

SEE ALSO: Portsmouth respiratory teams 'feel prepared' as plans put in place for patient increase

Mr Moughadam, a registered dentist since 1994, is not fighting the decision but said it left him ‘disappointed for patients in pain’.

Patients who attended his practice for emergency care, he said, included a charge nurse, a mum-of-four and a heavily pregnant woman left in tears because of the pain she was experiencing.

‘Anyone who has had dental pain will know it’s the worst kind and so many people can’t get through to 111 at the moment because our NHS is so busy,' he said.

‘But, even though we are closed, the good news is we got 28 people out of pain and we now have thousands of pieces of protective equipment that will help the NHS.’

John Milne, the CQC’s senior national professional advisor for dentistry, said: ‘Dentists have been advised by the chief dental officer to only provide telephone advice and prescriptions where appropriate.

‘The smaller number of patients needing more active treatment should be referred to urgent treatment centres.

‘These measures support government advice for the public to stay at home to reduce infection risks.’

An NHS England and NHS Improvement South East spokeswoman added: ‘If a patient needs urgent dental care they should continue to call their dental practice as normal who are able to provide advice, analgesia and anti-microbials where appropriate.

‘National advice is that dental treatment should not be carried out unless absolutely necessary.

‘If needed dentists can refer patients to urgent care centres that are currently being established.’

A message from the Editor

Thank you for reading this story on portsmouth.co.uk. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive – we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to portsmouth.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit our Subscription page now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.