I had a friend who was a Dentist, now this was some years ago but it made no sense to be paid by the NHS and accept NHS patients so he did not. I forget the details but how they paid was weird.
I certainly did not pay for dental care beyond a tooth brush and I think that is somehow more a national trait for reasons I do not know. Personally I have memories of bad Dentistry from a child and that probably influenced me.
Now not a UK thing but quite a few people in the US go to Mexico for major stuff, much cheaper and you get a holiday included.
Most NHS spending occurs in the last few years of life, logically that makes no sense. Spending should be concentrated on where you get the biggest impact. An old fart like myself or someone with their life in front of me, we have our priorities back to front.