Dentists from Poland are helping the government meet its target of 1,000 extra dentists by October, a health minister has said.

Rosie Winterton was in Poland on Thursday to visit the Warsaw training centre where part of the group of 41 dentists are preparing for their new role.

The group will start work in the UK in March and April, filling vacancies in areas with long-standing shortages such as Hull, Shropshire, and Sussex.

The scheme is part of a programme of reform for NHS dentistry which includes extra investment, more training places, and new ways of working to make the NHS a more attractive career option for dentists.

"Our international recruitment programme is well underway," Winterton said.

"The first group of 29 dentists from Poland are already at work in the NHS treating thousands of patients, with more on the way.

"We are committed to increasing the number of NHS dentists by 1,000 by October this year, and our domestic and international recruitment programme will deliver two thirds of these."

Winterton also met Polish health minister Marek Balicki and his deputy Pawel Sztwiertnia to thank them for their co-operation with the recruitment.

She said: "Polish dentists working in England provide care for NHS patients and the NHS offers excellent opportunities for them to develop professionally.

"The majority of dentists from Poland are on new personal dental services contracts which, as requested by dentists, takes the focus away from invasive dental treatment to give them more time with patients."

Immigration minister Des Browne added that the scheme was "a good example of accession state nationals providing key scarce skills to the UK".

"Since May 2004, workers from Poland and from the other seven accession states who have come to the UK are working not only in the health service, but are also filling gaps in sectors such as hospitality, agriculture, and construction," he said.

'Poor countries lose out'

The health minister's visit comes just days after the publication of a damming report from Save the Children which said the migration of medical staff to the UK from developing countries is contributing to the collapse of health systems, particularly across Africa.

Save the Children director general Mike Aaronson said: "Many African countries suffer severe poverty and have limited funds available for basic services like education and health.

"It is vulnerable children who suffer disproportionately when these services are failing.

"It is shameful that many poor countries are spending millions of pounds training nurses and doctors to prop up the UK’s National Health Service."

The research was carried out by Medact and focussed mainly on Ghana - where one child in every ten dies before the age of five.

It is estimated that the UK has saved £65 million by recruiting nurses trained in Ghana, and the services delivered by Ghanaian nurses and doctors in the UK are valued at £39 million a year.

Medact director Mike Rowson said: "The government needs to implement positive policies to help secure effective health care in poor countries with severe shortages of essential staff.

"Financial restitution and stronger partnership between the UK health system and poor countries could begin to redress a key global divide."

Save the Children also called on the government to financially compensate poor countries who lose staff to the NHS.

They believe the "brain drain" is a significant factor in failing healthcare systems in the developing world.