By Marjory Inglis, health reporter

BROXDEN BUSINESS Park in Perth yesterday emerged as the favoured site for a £6 million plus purpose-built dental treatment and training centre.

NHS Tayside bosses were presented with a number of other site options, including Perth Royal Infirmary, for the centre that will offer NHS dentistry to thousands of people locally who have lost access to NHS services. Many dentists have decided to treat purely private patients and withdraw from providing NHS services.

The proposed dental centre will be staffed by salaried dentists, employed directly by NHS Tayside, and students in training.

While backing the plan to provide greater access to NHS dentistry and support those training to be dentists of the future, some health chiefs were reluctant to back the choice of Broxden yesterday.

Dr Alan Shepherd, a gastroenterologist at PRI, said his hospital was “a better site for patients to get to.” He understood problems with parking was one of the reasons PRI was not selected as the preferred option of health service planners.

Dr Shepherd suggested that staff could be encouraged to use a “park and ride” facility, freeing up spaces at PRI for patients.

He was concerned about the proximity of a “very wide, very fast road” next to the proposed site at Broxden that people would have to negotiate. It posed a particular risk to people with children alighting from public transport and making their way across the road to the site, he said.

Mr Bill Nicoll, a senior manager concerned in the planning of the dental centre, told members of NHS Tayside’s strategic policy and resources committee, meeting in Kings Cross Hospital, Dundee, that specialist advice had been taken on transport issues and there had been public involvement in these discussions.

He said one of the reasons Broxden was selected as the favoured option was because of its public transport links. The centre would bring in people from outwith Perth city and Broxden offered good access for people coming from Aberfeldy, Pitloch- ry, Crieff and other areas beyond the city.

Non-executive member John Angus said parking around PRI was “a nightmare” and staff could not be forced to use the bus.

“There is parking at Broxden and there is park and ride,” he said. “PRI is a non- starter.”

Non-executive member Andrew Richmond did not think the committee had been presented with sufficient information to make a decision. He wanted to know where people would be coming from to attend the centre and whether they had access to a car or relied on public transport. All he knew was the numbers of people who no longer had access to an NHS dentist but nothing more about them.

Making clear he backed the principle of providing people with more access to NHS dentistry, he abstained from backing the recommendation to support development of a dental centre at Broxden at this stage.

Dr Shepherd also abstained, but the recommendation to favour Broxden through the formal planning process was backed by a majority.

Due to the financial commitment the plans have to go before the Scottish Executive for approval. Consideration there is scheduled for July.