Doctors and dentists whose skills are being squandered while they languish in the Home Office backlog tell of their frustration After five years studying to become a qualified dentist in his home country of Sudan, Omar (not his real name) spent seven years mainly treating children in Khartoum. But since arriving in Britain last June - despite a desperate shortage of NHS dentists - the 32-year-old has not been able to put his skills to use.