College of General Dentistry Changes and the Passing of a Pioneer
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- Published: Monday, 04 March 2024 09:54
- Written by Peter Ingle
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The College of General Dentistry (CGDent) has announced that it has begun the process of appointing its next president. At the same time it has marked the passing of a pioneer who was recognised as a founder of dental vocational training and the foundation dentist system.
The College’s President, Dr Abhi Pal, was elected the eleventh and final Dean of the Faculty of General Dental Practice UK (FGDP) in 2021. Later that year the FGDP transferred to the College of General Dentistry, becoming an independent College for general dental practice. Like its predecessor, CGDent publishes guidance and standards documents that reach far beyond its membership. As Dr Pal approaches the end of his three-year term of office, he will have served the majority of his time as its first President.
The second President will be appointed by the College and remain its most senior and visible office holder. This comes as the organisation seeks a Royal Charter. The College is currently accepting applications with a closing date of March 18th Full Members, Associate Fellows and Fellows of the College are eligible to apply for the post of President. The new President will take office on June 21.st
While the College looks to the future it has also announced that John Brookman FCGDent, FFGDP(UK)(Hon.) who was one of the founding board members of the Faculty of General Dental Practice, has died at the age of 92. Older dentists may remember him as the founder of Vocational Training for GDPs, as much as for his work with the Faculty. Qualifying in 1954, he would experience difficulties in the early 1960’s and had to pause his dental career. In this time he retrained as a teacher, and this would be a major influence when he returned to dentistry.
He ran a multi surgery practice in Surrey expanding it to include five full-time dentists with part-time associates and hygienists, serving a mix of NHS and private patients. At the same time he became an assistant dental tutor for the British Postgraduate Medical Federation. Recognising the gap between the degree of competence required for daily dental practice and the level acquired at dental school, from 1975 he established the UK’s first Vocational Training scheme for general dental practitioners, based in Guildford.
His Guildford scheme laid the foundation for nationwide vocational training, which was later organised on a voluntary basis by the Committee for Vocational Training (of which he was a member). With the value of Vocational Training becoming widely recognised, it would go on to become a statutory requirement in 1993. He also set up educational programmes for dental tutors and teachers, introducing clinical audit and peer review, and emphasising problem-solving through practical application.
A founder of the College of General Dental Practitioners of the United Kingdom (CGDP) – one of several organisations established at the time to pursue the postgraduate educational interests of general practice dentists – he was among those involved in discussions which would eventually unite GDPs behind the formation of the Faculty of General Dental Practitioners at the Royal College of Surgeons. In 1992 he became one of the Faculty’s founding board members.
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