Longterm employee and senior dentist, Dr Roy Gamma, has described the closure of Brunswick Holistic Dental Centre (BHDC) as devastating.
Large dental corporation BUPA closed the clinic on April 16.
Dr Gamma told The Echo the clinic has operated continually in the same building for over 50 years, ‘and now leaves Brunswick Heads as well as Ocean Shores without a dentist’.
He said, ‘The community at large will likely be shocked by the news, especially as a few years ago, the Maven Dental group closed down the only dental practice in Ocean Shores and merged it with their Mullumbimby practice’.
BUPA were asked for comment but are yet to respond.
There were no attempts to sell the practice, prior to breaking news to the staff, says Dr Gamma, ‘with one manager heard saying no one would want to buy it as it’s not viable’.
‘After hearing the news, a last minute attempt to buy the practice by a dentist that used to work at BHDC came to no avail, with a claim that it was too much of a risk. I assume for the potential purchaser, there wasn’t enough time to do due diligence to accurately assess and investigate those risks’.
Devastating and bewildering decision
Dr Gamma says that the closure is a ‘devastating and bewildering decision for the practitioners and loyal support staff at BHDC’.
‘BUPA management claim that the recent performance of BHDC and its location within the network, are the reasons to not renew the lease and to close down the practice.
‘BHDC is within the Brisbane BUPA territory but is their furthest dental practice from Brisbane and their only one in NSW.
‘The COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions placed on performing general dentistry were damaging for the practice, but the problems stem way back before this.
‘Experienced dental practitioners and oral heath therapists that had busy appointment books that moved on from BHDC were not replaced. The remaining practitioners at BHDC were often unable to meet the demands of existing and new patients of the practice’.
Dentist shortage
Dr Gamma says, ‘There is an Australia-wide shortage of dentists and there is a growing trend for experienced practitioners to seek out employment at privately-owned, rather than corporate-owned dental practices’.
‘So BUPA struggled to attract dentists, oral health therapists as well as support staff to BHDC since their ownership. The last two dentists employed at BHDC have been overseas graduates on visa sponsorships’.
Dr Gamma added, ‘From a personal perspective, it’s been an honour and a privilege to provide dental care to the loyal patients of BHDC, some of whom are still in my care after 17 years’.
‘I will miss them all.
‘I will also miss the charm, beauty and ambiance of the practice and especially the room I worked in.
‘Time and again new patients would enter with apprehension and rather than see the chair and all the dental equipment they would be granted with what is probably the best view in Brunswick Heads.
‘You could see the tension in their shoulders drop as they would all comment by saying this must be the best view from any dental chair in the world’.
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