NHS leaders see prevention and community care in action

As NHS staff from across the North West gathered to discuss what they want to see from the government’s 10 Year Health Plan, a children’s oral health service in Liverpool is already paving the way in bringing preventative care into the community.

As part of a visit to the North West for the first of a series of regional events for frontline NHS staff, social care and public health staff to help shape the future of the health service, NHS England leaders met families who are benefitting from the Tiny Teeth dental project, which aims to tackle high levels of childhood tooth decay.

The initiative, which is delivered by Beyond, NHS Cheshire and Merseyside’s children and young people’s transformation programme, in partnership with Koala Northwest and City Healthcare Partnerships CIC, supports local families to understand the importance of dental care and teaches pre-school children how to brush their teeth twice daily through sessions at more than 30 community locations.

NHS England’s Primary Care Medical Director, Dr Claire Fuller, who visited Tiny Teeth at the Life Bank Nursery at Kensington Children’s Centre with Chief Nursing Officer for England Duncan Burton and Dr Paula Cowan, Medical Director for Primary Care in the North West, said: “It was brilliant to see the simplicity of the innovative service in Liverpool to provide preventative healthcare.

“Ultimately, this is how we will redirect and revolutionise services, helping people focus on preventative care, in their own community. Schemes like Tiny Teeth will reduce the burden on the NHS so that it can provide care to people with urgent needs more efficiently, whilst at the same time improving the lives of the young people that will lead us into tomorrow.”

Prof Ian Ashworth, Director of Population Health at NHS Cheshire and Merseyside, said: “Too many of our children are suffering from tooth decay, a preventable issue that can have a lasting impact on their health and wellbeing.

“Tiny Teeth, which is part of our All Together Smiling initiative, is helping to improve oral health and reduce inequalities in our communities - more than 229,000 free toothbrushing packs have been sent out and by the end of March 2025, all nine of our Places will be developing their supervised toothbrushing offer with the aim of reaching more than 200 settings in our most deprived communities.”

While in Liverpool, NHS leaders also visited Kensington Pharmacy to hear how community pharmacies are helping to increase access to NHS services closer to where people live, from providing prescribed medicines for a range of common health conditions and prescribing contraception directly rather than via GP, to blood pressure checks to identify people with hypertension early and help prevent cardiovascular disease.

Dr Paula Cowan, Regional Medical Director for Primary Care, said: “We know that moving more services into the community and doing more to prevent ill health, as well as treating it, are going to be a key part of the work to transform the NHS, so it has been incredible to see some of this work already in action in the North West.

“Community pharmacies are offering a wide range of services including treatments for minor ailments, blood pressure case finding and contraception advice and management. The Pharmacy First scheme now enables pharmacists to manage certain conditions with prescription medication in a timely manner and this helps to free up GP appointments for patients who need them most.”