Updates from week commencing 8 May 2023

Friday 12 May 2023

14:13

Celebrating Nurses' Day

Today marks Nurses' Day, the campaign aimed at raising awareness of nursing staff's unwavering commitment to making a difference in their patients and loved ones' lives.

Providing dental care is a team responsibility, and each member of the dental team has a vital role to play in the promotion and maintenance of dental health. Dental nurses are an essential part of the team, supporting the clinician and ensuring that patients are comfortable.

Apprenticeship programmes can be a great opportunity to grow your practice by recruiting new trainee dental nurses. This enables those passionate in the area to gain hands on experience and become a valued member of the team.

Find out more about the day and the resources available to help you get involved.

10:39

Scotland: Juniors vote to join medics in strike action

Dentists in Scotland employed under the same contract as junior doctors, will join their medical colleagues in a 72-hour walkout, if BMA ongoing negotiations with the Scottish government do not result in a credible pay offer.

The overwhelming majority of members (91%) from this small but important cohort backed industrial action, on a turnout of 79%.

"We are hopeful that a negotiated settlement can be found" says Chair Eddie Crouch.

"But our members will take strike action if the Scottish Government fail to come back to the table with a serious pay offer."

• More information on the ballot

09:42

Visit our stand at the Dentistry Show 2023

Visit our stand at The British Dental Conference & Dentistry Show today and tomorrow. There will be on-stand short talks with Shawn Charlwood, Chair of the General Dental Practice Committee and Martin Woodrow, our CEO.

The talks will review the trends driving practitioners towards private care, what this means for patients, dentists, and the future of the profession.

We will also examine the role the government action plays in saving NHS dentistry and ensuring access to quality care. We look forward to seeing you there!

09:07

Northern Ireland: Cuts are the wrong cure

Officials in Northern Ireland are attempting to plug massive holes in the budget. We've warned that if the axe falls on dentistry - indeed if there is a failure to provide desperately needed investment - this service faces collapse.

The price will be paid by patients across Northern Ireland, and leaders representing every field of practice have taken this message in an open letter to Peter May, Permanent Secretary at the Department of Health.

Just days ago, Michael O'Neill, Head of General Dental & Ophthalmic Services wrote to dentists spelling out that work is ongoing to secure savings and raise revenue across the Department's budgets. We know what that means.

In the absence of government, we are calling on MLAs to step up, and protect the future of NHS dentistry across Northern Ireland.

Please join us. It just takes 5 minutes. Write to your MLA today.

Thursday 11 May 2023

15:14

BDJ: Oral surgery referrals, vulcanised rubber, and suicide prevention

The latest BDJ issue explores oral surgery referrals, vulcanised rubber, and suicide prevention.

Articles include:

• An investigation into oral surgery referrals in Wales: investigating the reasons behind surgery referrals to secondary care.
• A brief history of the development and use of vulcanised rubber in dentistry: illustrating the discovery of vulcanised rubber as instrumental in making some forms dental treatment available to the general public.
• Should suicide risk assessment be embedded in undergraduate dental curricula?: establishing if undergraduate students believe they have a role to play in suicide risk assessment and discussing implementing suicide risk prevention in the undergraduate dental curriculum.
  

13:03

Helping you through your NHS clawback

Across England and Wales, members are facing significant clawback. Practices continue to struggle to meet contractual UDAs and clawbacks are set to reach record highs.

Our new video focuses on how to manage the clawback process for those who predict struggling in the new financial year. Make sure all claims are submitted within 2 months of the completion date.

Our advice team is here to support you, offering Extra and Expert members one-to-one support based on individual circumstances. You can call 020 7935 0875 or email the team at advice.enquiries@bda.org for support.

09:46

Scotland: Share your views on NHS dentistry recovery

The Scottish Parliament's COVID-19 Recovery Committee has launched a survey for Scottish dentists as part of a snapshot inquiry examining the progress on the aims set out by the Government in the NHS Recovery Plan 2021-2026 which includes a commitment to return NHS dentistry to pre-pandemic levels.

The survey's purpose is to understand dentists' views on the recovery of NHS dentistry and all responses must be submitted by 31 May 2023.

Please complete the survey and share the link with your colleagues. You do not need to be a member to take part.

Wednesday 10 May 2023

16:32

Recall of Emerade 300 and 500 microgram adrenaline pens

A precautionary recall has been called on all Emerade 300 or 500 adrenaline auto-injector pens. During a design assessment conducted by the manufacturer they detected activation failures and premature activation, resulting in some Emerade pens failing during use, after being dropped.

Patients, and carers of patients, have been asked to contact their GP to obtain a prescription and be supplied with autoinjectors of a different brand, then return all Emerade 300 and 500 auto-injectors to their local pharmacy.

The recall may affect dental practices holding these auto-injector pens as part of their emergency drugs kit. Affected practices should speak with their supplier for advice regarding returns and replacements. You must ensure to have other means of delivering adrenaline in case of emergency. 

13:46

England: Crisis? What Crisis?

Another PMQs, another chance for the Prime Minster to gloss over the crisis in NHS dentistry.

In response to questions from Norwich's Clive Lewis, the PM offered the same misleading lines on workforce, funding and reform we've heard, almost verbatim, since the start of 2023.

We don't know whether officials at Downing Street or the Department of Health are responsible for this wholly inaccurate briefing.

But facts are facts. The reality across England is mass closures, the return of queues outside practices, and millions unable to secure the care they need. Until the PM recognises this, we won't see progress.

"While ministers rearrange the deckchairs on the Titanic, their captain refuses to accept this service has even hit the iceberg" says GDPC Chair Shawn Charlwood.

"This 'crisis, what crisis?' attitude flies in the face of the facts."

10:46

International consensus on Dental Antibiotic Stewardship core outcome set

Antibiotic resistance is a global health crisis. They are prescribed by dentists far more often than any other drug, with a surge occurring after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Antibiotic stewardship promotes the responsible prescribing of antibiotics, in line with guidance, to keep them working for as long as possible.

To enable comparisons across oral healthcare settings, this paper sets out an agreed standardised international core outcome set (COS) to be used in studies about dental antibiotic stewardship, representing the minimum set of outcomes to be reported.

Antibiotics are lifesaving drugs; courses are available to ensure your team can identify the impact of resistant infections in patients and how they can collaborate in tackling antimicrobial resistance.

Antimicrobial Prescribing in Dentistry: Good Practice Guidelines gives practical guidance on the use of antimicrobials when managing oral and dental infections.

08:34