Our 2019 #Dentistry24 global dental celebration of dentistry kicked off in style this year, and I was really honoured to be asked to take over the @NHS Twitter handle for the week in the lead up to #Dentistry24 on the 24 May, to help showcase all things dental and build up to the day.
The @NHS Twitter feed has a reach of 42,000 followers, meaning we could get the dentistry word out to a global audience.
We were determined to build on last year's success and get a wider reach than ever before.
Dentistry in a week
My #DentalTweetWeek started off with promoting the wide range of initiatives dental teams in the UK are promoting such as #ALittleTripToTheDentist and Dental Checks By 1, followed by the great achievements by Health Education England #MiniMouthCareMatters and #LiftTheLip campaigns, designed to aid health professionals in identifying tooth decay and prevent the risk of sepsis in vulnerable hospitalised children.
Other initiatives featuring during the week included care for the elderly and the excellent work achieved by the #MouthCareMatters initiative across the country as well as advice on the management of #DentalTrauma.
A visit to Guys Dental Hospital introduced the Special Care & Sedation Team and the management of #DentalAnxiety and the use of dental sedation to help manage patients as well as the BDA highlighting the great work of community dentists.
#DementiaFriendlyDentistry also featured, as well #OralCancer awareness, #OralHealthPrevention and #Sustainability in dentistry.
Allied health services also featured on how to manage dental problems such as utilising the #DentalPharmacyFactsheets along with how to access #UrgentDentalCare via #NHS111 online and how the profession can utilise digital dentistry.
Dental charities also made an impact and it was great to see the work they are delivering to help improve awareness on oral and general health such as #BoundariesForLife, @CrisisDentalService and #SmileMonth by the Oral Health Foundation.
The Dental #230Joke featured daily - cheesy yet fun with some classic one liners that would make dads across the globe chuckle!
The week also featured #MeetTheTeam, promoting the various specialities, DCPs and team members within the profession to help inform patients and carers of the various dental professionals within the team.
A big thank you to everyone who volunteered to be part of this initiative – you are amazing!
Dentistry in a day #Dentistry24
The week rounded up with our #Dentistry24 day designed to thank, celebrate, share and collaborate, across the dental profession over the globe.
Our reach this year gained over 16 million impressions worldwide - a massive increase compared to the 2 million achieved in 2018 - thanks to the support of dental teams and organisations.
Tweets spanned from North & South America, across Europe , India & Asia to Australia and New Zealand.
#Dentistry24 celebrated the work of the dental profession, with posts of clinical teams celebrating achievements to those who had received Royal Honours in the UK and abroad, with messages of thanks and motivation from people like Professor Liz Kay, Janet Goodwin, Eric Whaites, Jo Johnson, Chet Trivedy, Sam Shah and dentistry's own Tooth Fairy, Claire Stevens.
Thanks also to the BDA for their ongoing support, and to their members who took part.
What's coming up for #Dentistry24 next year?
We plan to build on this success for our 2020 celebration – which will again take place on 24 May, where we look forward to your positive posts on Instagram and Twitter on #Dentistry24 – celebrating the good work of the dental profession across the globe.
We're always looking for ideas and volunteers, to help us make the campaign bigger and better, if you'd like to take part next year, do get in touch now, so we can start planning.
Follow us on @UKDentistry24
Tashfeen Kholasi, GDP
@digitaldentis
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