The Edinburgh Dental Dispensary 1860 to 1879.

ABSTRACT

The Edinburgh Dental Dispensary began in 1860 as a private charity to provide free treatment for the poor and to teach students. In 1862 the dispensary became a public charity in new premises with a committee of managers. Dental students were admitted in 1864. By 1867 the annual number of patient attendances was about 4,000 and the mainstay of treatment was extraction. Housekeepers were the only support staff. The dispensary was constantly impecunious; in 1869 the managers considered discontinuing the service. In February 1879, following the 1878 Dentists Act, the dispensary was merged into the new Edinburgh Dental Hospital and School.