A flurry of questions were answered in the last weeks of the Parliamentary session before the General Election. Questions from Steve McCabe came on undelivered UDAs (last year) and prevention, as well as the number of school days lost through dental symptoms. Another Labour MP Grahame Morris asked about the effect of low pay awards on the Service.
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The BDA has told the GDC it must focus on the fundamentals and fix Fitness to Practise, as it responded to plans set out in the regulator’s Shifting the Balance document. BDA Chair Mick Armstrong said: “We asked dentists what they would change about dental regulation. They painted a picture of an overbearing regulator that really needs to focus.”
Over 250 dentists from across the UK are due to attend the annual gathering of Local Dental Committees (LDCs) in Birmingham on 8-9 June. Alisdair McKendrick, Chair of Conference, said: “The LDC Conference has been representing the interests of grass-roots NHS dentists since 1948. We need them now more than ever but to ensure their ongoing relevance I urge GDPs everywhere to get involved in their local dental committee.”
Read more: LDC Annual Conference to debate contract reform in June
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A leading paediatric dentist in Scotland, Professor Nicola Innes, has called for parents to take more responsibility for their children’s teeth after figures showed the fight against decay in the poorest areas of Scotland has failed to hit targets. She says tooth-brushing programmes in schools have made a huge difference but more needs to be done.
Read more: Leading Scottish dentist blames parents for child tooth decay
Hospitals will be banned from selling sugary drinks and high-calorie snacks next year unless action is taken to drastically cut their sales, health officials have said. New rules will mean that fizzy drinks, sweetened coffee made and fruit juices with extra sugar will be heavily restricted in NHS hospitals. In a separate report a link has been found between fizzy drinks and dementia.
Read more: Crack down on sugary drinks and snacks in hospitals