NHS Dentists, Big Ticket Spending, Student Mental Health

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The British Dental Association says shortages of NHS dentists are making it harder and harder to meet the needs of patients. In many parts of the UK, it's become difficult for surgeries to recruit new NHS dentists. For patients that means long waiting lists and in some areas, long journeys for treatment. You & Yours has heard from patients in the south west of England who were assigned an NHS dentist more than sixty miles from their home. Dentists complain that NHS work is increasingly unattractive to new graduates and many experienced clinicians are retiring early. Yet the Department of Health maintains that the number of dentists working in the NHS is at the second highest level ever. The latest figures on high street spending suggest that sales of big household items have fallen and are continuing to decline. The demand for these "big ticket" items, such as fridges,TVs, sofas and beds, are seen as a measure of consumer confidence. Uncertainty over Brexit or wages are often blamed for reduced spending, but what do sales figures really tell us about the state of the UK economy? Britain's universities are concerned about the growing number of students with mental health problems. Cases of suicide have made newspaper headlines, but universities have also noticed an increase in the number of students reporting common conditions, such as depression. A working party has been set up to investigate how universities should respond, but how much support can students reasonably expect their university to provide? Producer: Jonathan Hallewell Presenter: Shari Vahl.