Andre Basson was last month was given a six-month suspension and ordered to repay an NHS grant. He failed to wash his hands between patients and occasionally failed to wear gloves at his Inverness practice. In 2009, he was awarded £175,000 by the NHS to help him set up his practice as part of a scheme to address the shortage of dentists in the Highlands.
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The UK Committee of Postgraduate Dental Deans and Directors (COPDEND) has announced that 76 UK graduates are still on the waiting list for a Dental Foundation Training (DFT) place, while 968 graduates have confirmed places. The BDA’s Judith Husband has responded to the report by calling for ‘proper investment’ in DFT places.
Hull City Council is considering introducing water fluoridation to improve children's teeth. However, a campaign against the plans has been started and protesters are claiming it was "mass medication without consent". Local dentists are appealing to people in Hull to ignore "scaremongering" from campaigners.
Read more: Dentists accuse fluoride opponents of scare-mongering
The GDS Regulations have been amended from today so that dentists must give all NHS patients who attend their practice ‘the opportunity to provide feedback about the service received from the practice through the Friends and Family Test’. From 1 April 2015, it has been expanded to NHS dental practices, ambulance services, patient transport services, acute hospital outpatients and day cases.
Read more: Patients able to provide feedback about dental practices
A dentist who was served with a notice of erasure from the Dentist’s Register has defied all predictions and successfully appealed. Edgar Gordon was told by the General Dental Council he was “unlikely to succeed” and family and friends counselled him against challenging the erasure - but sustained by a belief in the rule of law, he defended himself and won.
The BDIA’s ‘Dental Industry Manifesto’ sets out five key priorities for action in the dental sector for the next Government. BDIA Executive Director, Tony Reed, explains, “The industry believes that positive and focussed investment and support from Government is vital to ensure the highest quality oral health outcomes for patients and an efficient and sustainable future for the provision of dentistry in the UK”.