Simplyhealth has successfully signed another 50/50 Dental Practice Partnership with, Fox Dental Care based in St Austell, Cornwall.

With around 1,500 dental patients, many of whom are already covered by Simplyhealth’s Denplan dental plans, the partnership will support Fox Dental Care to further develop, grow and continue to serve its local community.

As part of an ongoing commitment to investment and innovation in the dental market, Simplyhealth’s partnership scheme offers dental practices the opportunity to enter into an equal partnership, ensuring that both partners have equal rights in the practices.

The partnership model has been designed to enable dentists to retain day to day clinical management with Simplyhealth providing support and expertise in business services, development and patient insights gained from their existing successful Denplan services as well as through helping over 3 million people with their everyday health needs across the group.

The model works well for Practice owners looking for a smooth transition into retirement while wanting to retain responsibility for the day to day decisions and clinical delivery.  They can retain the legacy they have built in the community but are able to realise the value of the practice and make the move into ownership less of a barrier for the new partner.

Romana Abdin, Chief Executive of Simplyhealth added: “This is a true partnership that is for the benefit of Fox’s Dental Care, patients and Simplyhealth. We’re looking forward to working together as Simon approaches his retirement, growing the business and serving more patients. We want to work in partnership with more Healthcare Professionals so we can seize opportunities and overcome challenges together, while supporting more patients to make the most of life through better everyday health.”

Simon Fox, owner of Fox Dental Care, explains: “Selling a dental practice is an incredibly stressful and complex process, one that I was not looking forward to. However, the help and experience of the Simplyhealth team made the whole thing straightforward.  From first meetings right through to contract signing, I have felt relaxed and supported, which is the same as I have done during the last 25 plus years of working with them. In particular having our dedicated Simplyhealth Business Development Executive, Harriet, always at the end of the phone, has really proved invaluable. Selling the business you've lovingly built up over 35 years to someone you trust and already have a great relationship with has certainly made things easier. I look forward to the coming years in partnership and to my eventual retirement.”

For further information about Simplyhealth please visit www.simplyhealth.co.uk.

http://newsroom.simplyhealth.co.uk/

@SimplyhealthUK

Facebook.com/SimplyhealthUK

Bridge2Aid is gearing up for its national fundraising day – Smile in Pink. This is a day during National Smile Month when people in the UK dental community come together to wear pink and fairy wings proudly for a very good cause – to ensure millions in East Africa have access to safe emergency dental treatment.

This year, the event will take place on 2^nd of June and Bridge2Aid is rounding up businesses, organisations, dental practices and supporters to join forces with thousands of others who believe that everyone has the right to be pain-free.

Imagine suffering with a painful toothache for months or years; the pain being so great you miss work or struggle caring for your family. Or imagine your child in pain and not able to attend school. Then imagine having no access to safe dental care.

In fact, more than 70% of the world’s population has no access to the most simple dental pain relief, leaving billions to face a daily battle in the toughest of life circumstances. There is a desperate need to tackle oral disease, infection and chronic pain in communities throughout the developing world.

The money raised during Smile in Pink Day 2017 will fund emergency dental training programmes for rural health workers in the developing world, so that they can provide life-changing dental care in their communities.

“Every year on Smile in Pink Day, friends and supporters from around the world help to change and save lives – freeing millions in East Africa from the prospect of unnecessary pain and suffering caused by untreated oral disease and infections”, said Mark Topley, Bridge2Aid's CEO.

He continued, “This event really brings the dental community together and provides fantastic support for the work the whole Bridge2Aid family delivers in East Africa.”

About Smile in Pink Day

Since 2014, Smile in Pink Day has seen thousands of people in the dental community come together during National Smile Month to wear pink and fundraise for Bridge2Aid’s work. The theme this year is fairy wings and fairy cakes, and the money raised will provide intensive, practical training in emergency dental skills to existing health workers in East Africa – ensuring those in the poorest communities are able to function free from unnecessary pain, and avoid the risk of preventable infections and diseases.

About Bridge2Aid

Bridge2Aid is a UK-registered charity that aims to provide emergency dental training to rural health workers in East Africa. Since 2002, Bridge2Aid has had a big impact, having delivered 83 training programmes in Tanzania and Rwanda, as well as having successfully trained 461 government health workers, providing access to emergency dental treatment for over 4.6 million people.

Our vision is a world free of dental pain and our work provides long-term, lasting solutions by passing skills into local hands. For more information, visit www.bridge2aid.org and follow @Bridge2Aid on Twitter.

To register for Smile in Pink Day 2017 and get your participant kit, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

For more information, visit www.bridge2aid.org

Dentistry show is here!

If you’re heading to the show make sure you head to B70 to visit the Patient Plan Direct team. Why you ask? Here are eight great reasons…

1. Cost saving clinic

We know you like to keep your business outgoings under control (who doesn’t?), which is why we want to help with that. Take a note of the number of patients you currently have on plan, plus the admin fee you’re paying your existing plan provider and then head over to stand B70 to discover how we could save you thousands of pounds per year by switching to our low-cost and fully supported service.

2. More transfers than ever before

We’ve noticed a huge trend of new practices switching from their existing patient plan provider to Patient Plan Direct, and with our low admin fees of just £1.20 per patient per month, it’s easy to see why. With our support, the transfer process is really simple, so you’ll notice the savings almost straight away. Visit us at the Dentistry Show so that we can explain more!

3. Meet the whole team

If you’re already working with us, meeting up at the show gives us a chance to put faces to names and helps us make our service even more personalised to you. If you’re not already a customer then head over to stand B70 to see how lovely we all are!

4. Learn more about our A&E cover, including implant cover

Our patient payment plans offer worldwide Dental A&E cover, which includes implant cover as standard (all included for £1.20). Discover more about this great extra benefit by popping over to see us.

5. Practice-branded solutions

You’ve worked hard to build a brand for your dental practice, so why not strengthen that further through your own practice-branded patient payment plan? Talk to us at the Dentistry Show to find out how. Particularly, if you’re confused about your current providers branding changes…

6. Let us demonstrate

Our online admin management portal allows you to control your plan in real time 247 and is so easy to use that you’ll wonder why you didn’t switch over sooner. Don’t just take our word for it though, come and see for yourself on stand B70!

7. Tailored to you

There’s no one size fits all in dentistry, you know your patients and what will suit them best, which is why we can tailor the plans to suit your practice’s specific needs. We also aim to provide a personal approach to our customer service, through our training, practice visits and telephone support. Come over for a chat to find out how we can offer a bespoke service to suit you.

8. Grab a free coffee and chat

We love coffee, but we love sharing it even more, so pop over for a free cuppa and catch up with our team. Whether you already know us, or would like to get to know us, we’re looking forward to meeting you at the show.

See you soon!

In the mean time check out some of our success stories here http://patientplandirect.com/case-studies/

If you’re not heading to the show, you can always arrange a meeting with our friendly and experienced business development team at your practice at your convenience. Simply call or email us:

Tel: 08448486888

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The Dentistry Show 2017 will see Ivoclar Vivadent UK & Ireland showcase their new brand, Ivoclar Digital, to the British market for the first time after it’s official launch at IDS, Cologne, in March.

Ivoclar Digital is the biggest development for the leading dental manufacturer of materials and equipment since the market-leading IPS e.max all-ceramic system was introduced to the dental industry over 10 years ago. The new digital products will provide dentists and dental technicians with state-of-the-art professional expertise throughout the entire digital process journey; assisting them with material selection and digital processes in the design and production of quality restorations, complemented with a wide range of additional services and customer support.

PrograMill One will make its debut as Ivoclar’s first chairside mill for dentists; it is the world’s smallest 5-axis milling machine, combining industrial manufacturing quality with high precision and modern design. In the innovative 5-axis turn-milling technique, the workpiece rotates around the tool at a constant feed and the tool never leaves the block, ensuring short milling times and minimal tool wear.

Various validated processing strategies are available for different materials and indications; the unit has been particularly developed for milling IPS e.max. The machine’s wireless capabilities allow it to be operated from any location with the help of a special app for tablets and smartphones and the optical status display shows the current status of the machine. PrograMill One is coordinated with the scanners and design solutions from 3Shape.

Ivoclar Vivadent’s technical stand for DTS is adjacent to the Dentistry Show stand; both will have numerous new and existing product demonstrations. Clinical and Technical stand visitors can also expect the most relevant product and material updates for dental and laboratory professionals, whilst also benefitting from the expert advice of our attending specialists.

The DentistryShow takes place on the 12^th & 13^th May, NEC,

You can find Ivoclar Vivadent Clinical at Stand No. F35,

Ivoclar Vivadent DTS Technical at Stand No. F28.

•       OUTSOURCED PRODUCTION – The Straumann® CARES® Centralised Milling facility operates as an extension of the modern laboratory, with state-of-the art equipment and validated workflows. There is a comprehensive range of products to choose from, including one-step restorations, customised abutments, screw-retained bridges and bars, copings, bridge frameworks as well as full contour crowns and bridges. Alongside this, Straumann offer a variety of materials including multiple glass ceramics, zirconia available in numerous shades and translucencies, cobalt chrome, titanium and polymers.

By adding an all-encompassing digital dimension to their portfolio Straumann have added a completely new vibe to their offering – they’re more than a dental implant company, they’re your digital solutions partner.

TOUR DATES

Audiences will be driven wild by the great product deals, insightful presentations and hands-on demonstrations on offer at the Straumann Digital Performance Tour. Plus, with exclusive backstage access to the live music and entertainment on offer, and after parties scheduled at selected locations, the Straumann Digital Performance Tour promises to be a must-attend event for any technician, CDT or clinician looking to enhance their digital offering in 2017 and beyond.

Don’t miss the opportunity to see these fantastic innovations at the Straumann Digital Performance Tour. FREE to attend places are limited - to book your place visit straumanndigitalperformance.co.uk, or visit Straumann at TDS / DTS on Stand B10 or call 01293 651230.

straumanndigitalperformance.co.uk

straumann.co.uk

therevu.co.uk

Facebook: Straumann UK Twitter: @StraumannUK #digitalperformancetour

Friday 28 July 2017 • Torrington Place, London, WC1E 7JE

UCL Eastman Dental Institute and partners invite you to join us for a ground breaking, one-day symposium in sport and exercise medicine and oral health. Expert speakers will explore:

·         State-of-the-art developments and future of sport nutrition (Dr Kevin Currell & Prof. Ron Maughan);

·         Sport nutrition and health (Dr Dan Kings);

·         Eating disorders & RED-S in athletes (Dr Anna Katarina Melin)

·         Oral health & sport performance (Prof. Ian Needleman, Dr Paul Ashley & Dr Julie Gallagher).

We will discuss how to maximise performance and minimise negative performance impacts. The symposium will be highly relevant to sport and exercise medicine clinicians and scientists, nutritionists, performance directors, dental care professionals and researchers. See the full schedule

Book your place: www.ucl.ac.uk/eastman

The Symposium will be held in collaboration with the NCSEM and ISEH who, together with the Centre for Oral Health and Performance, are collaborating members with the IOC.

Have you ever heard of AuctionWeb, BackRub or Blue Ribbon Sports? These are all fledgling start-ups that, at some point, rebranded so that today you know them as multinational giants eBay, Google and Nike respectively! It may sound extreme, but renaming your business can breathe new life into it.

Defining your brand is a critical first step in any marketing plan and it takes time and thought. Once you’ve done it, you might like to think that you’ll never have to repeat the exercise, but nothing lasts forever. There comes a time in every business’s life when the branding gets stale or outdated. Change might also be desirable due to a change in ownership or focus.

Several high-profile brands have gone through identity adjustments over the years. A less drastic solution than renaming is to merely modify your business name to freshen it up. A recent example is the Huffington Post that, following the departure of its founder, chose to rebrand as the snappier ‘Huffpost’. In other cases, the business name is fine as it is and all that’s needed is a new or reworked logo, as we’ve seen over the years from the likes of Apple and Coca Cola.

As with all change, there is risk, but also the potential for great rewards. The risk is that you’ll alienate some of your loyal client base. In dental practice this would likely mean your older patients who might be more averse to change. The rewards, however, can be plentiful, especially if you’re looking to attract new patients. The decision, therefore, has to take into account what your prime demographic is, based on your location and services, and what kind of change will either reel them in or send them packing.

In short, when you start to feel like your practice image could use a refresh, it’s time to take stock of where you are as a company, how you are seen in the community and where you want to go. The exercise is an excellent opportunity to check the pulse of your practice and make the changes necessary to give it a jumpstart. The first step is to engage a specialist marketing agency to help guide you through the process. If you choose the right one, they’ll give you an honest assessment of what you should keep, and what you should let go of, and then help you do just that.

Milkshake Dental Marketing is a leading provider of specialist dental marketing in the UK, so give us a call on 01844 292086, visit our website or connect with us on social media (@MilkshakeDental).

“I first heard about the IAS Academy at my local British Dental Association meeting, where Tif Qureshi did a presentation about the ClearSmile Inman Aligner,” says Dr Margaret de Verteuil, an Associate Dentist at Stedham House Dental Surgery in Surbiton.

“I was not only impressed with his enthusiasm and extensive experience offering ethical and safe anterior alignment orthodontic treatment, but with the fact that the guided learning pathway is geared towards GDPs.

“As such, I completed the ClearSmile Inman Aligner certification course in February 2016, the online ClearSmile Aligner course in March 2016, the IAS Ortho Restorative course in September 2016 and I have recently completed the ClearSmile Inman Aligner Advanced course.

“I have found the appliances easy to use, but being able to access guidance through the online support has been invaluable to my progress and I feel much more confident about recommending the treatment to my patients knowing I have help if I need it.

“Since completing the training I am also much more aware of lapsed orthodontic cases and the problems this can cause if left untreated.”

If you are interested in becoming a provider of an IAS Academy appliance, get in touch today.

For more information about upcoming training courses, please visit www.iasortho.com or call 0208 916 2024

When Jamal Johnston sold his practice, he utilised the services of Dental Elite.

“I am very happy with the outcome of the transaction,” he commented when asked about the process, “and though it took slightly longer than expected, it still only took nine months.

“During the sale my representative was Leah Turner, who was very proactive and worked closely with me throughout the process.”

When asked about the challenges that he faced, he said:

“Without a doubt the most challenging part of the sale was due diligence. Had everything gone smoothly the deal could have been completed far sooner than it did, but because there were a few hiccups, the process was dragged out longer than it needed to be.

“My advice would therefore be to make all the necessary preparations and to start collecting and organising the documentation required for the due diligence aspect of the sale, even before you consider putting it on the market.”

There are a great many facets to selling a dental practice, so to ensure that you’ve got everything covered, make sure you utilise the services of a reputable practice sales and valuations agency like Dental Elite.

For more information contact Dental Elite. Visit www.dentalelite.co.uk, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 01788 545 900

If you want to acquire a reputation for providing the best tooth whitening, then you should be using products from Enlighten.

With a 98 per cent success rate to VITA B1, Enlighten products are the profession’s only option for a guaranteed whiter smile.

Demonstrably safe, Enlighten products utilise materials that have been in use in dentistry for over 100 years – however, if patients do experience any sensitivity, Enlighten also provides desensitising swabs and special Tooth Serum toothpaste to ensure patients are as comfortable as possible throughout the treatment

This attention to detail can make all the difference in your practice. By using Enlighten products, your patients will know that you are providing them with the very best. They know that at the end of their treatment, they will have the smile they have always wanted – and if you have the reputation for being able to provide this kind of service, there will be no end to the benefits!

To offer your patients the very best options possible, offer them Enlighten whitening.

For more information, visit www.enlightensmiles.com, email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call the team on 0207 424 3270

Dr Shubham Mittal, a senior partner of Clifton Moor Dental Centre uses the ONE COAT 7 UNIVERSAL one-component bonding agent from COLTENE and says, “It is a very good all in one bonding system.”

“Whether I need to use the Self-Etch technique, Total-Etch or Selective-Etch, I can rely on ONE COAT 7 UNIVERSAL to provide effective bonding to a number of materials, including gold, titanium, ceramic, zirconium oxide and composite. For me, having that level of freedom and flexibility has been invaluable to my restorative work.

“If, for instance, I needed to treat a hypersensitive tooth, I know that I could apply the bond with the Self-Etch technique and it would work like a dream with no sensitivity whatsoever.

“With the same product, I could also get a good bond on a non-vital tooth using Total-Etch – there really is no limit as to how the ONE COAT 7 UNIVERSAL can be used.

“As such, I would definitely recommend to other practitioners, especially those that are already using other COLTENE products.”

For more information contact COLTENE – one of the UK’s leading providers of quality restorative products.   

To find out more visit www.coltene.com, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 01444 235486

A-dec UK understands that in order to provide its clients with the best possible service, they need to have a strong, dedicated team that fully understands the dental sector and the products professionals need to practise exemplary dentistry.

With many years’ combined experience, the A-dec UK sales team meets all of these needs. Including Nick Olive (Territory Manager for South West England & South Wales), John Timson (Territory Manager for Central & Northern England), Justin Hind (Territory Manager for London and the South East) and Christopher Cox (Sales & Marketing Manager), the team strives to provide a service to the country’s dentists and dealers that is second-to-none.

Each member of the team has spent time at the A-dec head office in Newberg, Oregon USA, undertaking in-depth training for all A-dec products, ensuring they are fully up-to-date with the complete range of A-dec equipment that dental professionals in the UK favour. This technical training allows the sales team to discuss the ergonomic benefits of the A-dec range and how this can be best utilised in-practice to benefit both the dentist and the patient on a daily basis, as well as how to best maintain all equipment for optimum use and longevity.

Indeed, A-dec’s renowned product range of dental chairs, stools and other equipment solutions has been precisely designed to offer high standards of functionality and reliability, and there is no one more qualified to talk to dental professionals about the benefits of the wide range of A-dec products than the sales team.

Alongside this, their extensive experience in the dental sector allows the A-dec UK sales team to offer detailed ergonomic assessments to dentists, including advice about organising their workspaces and simplifying work-motion economy in order to boost productivity in surgery and improve workplace efficacy.

What’s more, the team has worked hard to develop a strong relationship with the UK’s most trusted dealers, and they work closely with some of the country’s best dental companies to provide a complete service that allows dentists to equip themselves with the products they need to practise the way they want.

But what really makes the A-dec UK team stand out from the competition, is their dedication to the dental profession and the pride they take in their work. A-dec has a long history of working closely with dentists to develop better solutions and encourage better dentistry, and the UK sales team epitomises this in their approach.

If you want to talk to the A-dec UK sales team directly, you can contact them here:

Nick Olive: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

John Timson: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Justin Hind: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Christopher Cox: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

They look forward to helping you.

For more information about A-dec Dental UK Ltd, visit

www.a-dec.co.uk or call on 0800 2332 85

GDPUK.com is for dentists and dental professionals to discuss all aspects of their profession, their practice and their business, centred on the UK. Subjects dissected have been diverse, from tips on simple techniques to guidance on buying major equipment, to discussions on the various practice management software packages, and of ongoing developments in British dental politics.

Established since 1997.

Moderated in Manchester, England by Dr Tony Jacobs BDS, the Group was started in Summer 1997, and continues to grow rapidly. Tony continues to work in his family general dental practice in Manchester.

Dental News

GDPUK.com also publishes UK dental news, and has had many exclusive stories, as well as being able to publish the latest news relevant to dentistry before other dental news providers. Latest news.

Blogs

In addition GDPUK blogs, both editorial and product updates are well read throughout the dental profession and industry. Latest blogs here.

GDPUK Forum

The group now has over 10,000 members, and attracts interest and sponsorship from major companies involved in the dental trade. The forum has had over 22,000 topics created and over 254,000 replies. That is 11.5 replies for every thread created! A huge amount of content and information.

Joining the Forum

The site remains free to join for all members of the dental profession. Register here.

Advertising

Advertisers can look forward to their banners being displayed thousands of times in a verified manner, using professional banner server software, to a targeted group of UK dental professionals.

Media Pack

Revenue is generated on the site by companies in the Dental trade, advertising on the site. More information about what GDPUK can offer our advertisers, can be found in our latest media pack. Please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for the latest media pack.

Further Information

For further information on what GDPUK can offer, please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Jonny will be attending both the upcoming Dentistry Show and BDA Show, get in touch if you would like to arrange to meet up.

20 Years of GDPUK

The site was established in 1997 and this year marks the 20th year anniversary of dentists talking to each other using the GDPUK medium. To mark the occasion we will be hosting a conference on Friday 17th November in Manchester. More details to follow.

20th Anniversary Publication.

We are currently putting together a publication that will be published in digital form in November 2017 around the time of the conference. If you would like to contribute to this please get in touch. We will also have advertising opportunities available at the conference and in the publication. For further information, please get in touch.

“The developments of the NobelClinician™ system for diagnostics and treatment planning have been absolutely superb throughout the last decade, particularly with regards to the smart fusion techniques,” says Dr Sharif Khan from Rockingham House Cosmetic and Implant Dentistry in West Yorkshire. “I have also been impressed by the rapid treatment protocols that can be used to minimise treatment times, as this is something modern patients are concerned about.”

With its Smart Fusion technology, NobelClinician™ combines 3D imagery of anatomical structures with soft tissue information from optical scans for superior visualisation, diagnostics and treatment planning.

Like all solutions from Nobel Biocare, the NobelClinician™ software is supported by a wealth of clinical studies.

For example, it is possible to accurately assess the available bone volume and this has been found to enhance predictability of treatment.

The bone volume can also be properly optimised by matching the implant design and drilling sequence to the bone quality for increased primary stability.

What’s more, virtual planning and communication with NobelClinician™ has been linked with higher treatment acceptance and better patient satisfaction with care and treatment outcomes.

So to make the most of technologies you can trust to improve your diagnostics, treatment planning and treatment outcomes, contact Nobel Biocare today.

For more information, contact Nobel Biocare on 0208 756 3300, or visit www.nobelbiocare.com

[1] Pozzi A, Sannino G, Barlattani A. Minimally invasive treatment of the atrophic posterior maxilla: a proof-of-concept prospective study with a follow-up of between 36 and 54 months. J Prosthet Dent 2012;108(5):286-97. 


[1] Scotti R, Pellegrino G, Marchetti C, Corinaldesi G, Ciocca L. Diagnostic value of NobelGuide to minimize the need for reconstructive surgery of jaws before implant placement: a review. Quintessence Int 2010;41(10):809-14.

[1] Katsoulis J, Enkling N, Takeichi T, Urban IA, Mericske-Stern R, Avrampou M. Relative bone width of the edentulous maxillary ridge. Clinical implications of digital assessment in presurgical implant planning. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res. 2012;14(Suppl 1):e213-23.

[1] Katsoulis J, Pazera P, Mericske-Stern R. Prosthetically Driven, Computer-Guided Implant Planning for the Edentulous Maxilla: A Model Study. Clin Implant Dent Relat Res 2009;11(3):238-245.

[1] Schnitman PA, Hayashi C, Han RK. Why guided when freehand is easier, quicker, and less costly? J Oral Implantol. 2014;40(6):670-8. 


[1] Imburgia M. Patient and team communication in the iPad era - a practical appraisal. Int J Esthet Dent 2014;9(1):26-39.

[1] Imburgia M, Coachman C. Using digital devices to improve communications between clinicians and patients during implantprosthetic treatment: a clinical study [#519]. 23rd Annual Scienti c Meeting of the European Association for Osseointegration. Rome, Italy: Wiley; 2014. p. 538. 

Renowned for its unique approach to recruitment, Accountancy Elite (a branch of specialist agency Dental Elite) is one of the leading recruiters for accountancy and finance in the Midlands area.

“I’ve used a few agencies throughout my career, but the service that I received from Accountancy Elite was by far the best I’ve ever had,” says Zuzana Juhasova, a client that was recently placed into a senior payroll administrator position.

“From start to finish, my representative (Matt Sweeney) was very helpful, approachable, contactable and accommodating – it really was a five star service.

“Plus, he kept me up to date every step of the way during the interview process, and even helped to negotiate my contract once I had been offered the job.

“I would definitely recommend Accountancy Elite to others.”

Are you looking for a role in accountancy or finance? Then get in touch with the team today.

For more information please call 01788 422186, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit www.accountancyelite.co.uk

Enlighten, the only whitening service that can truly guarantee a whiter smile, is going one step further to improve the standard of UK tooth whitening.

With it’s exciting new Regional Centres of Excellence scheme, Enlighten is giving aspiring UK practices the chance to become the go-to tooth whitening expert in your area. By offering access to Enlighten’s own extensive network of contacts and marketers, member practices will be put on the map – and enjoy increased numbers of patients as a result.

What’s more, the Enlighten team will be on hand to provide exclusive in-practice training to ensure that your staff knows exactly what is involved in the tooth whitening process. As such, your team will become one of the most useful sources of promotion, able to answer any of your patients’ queries with ease.

The Enlighten team will also offer expert marketing assistance, to ensure that your practice becomes known for excellent service and guaranteed results.

Membership to this business-changing initiative is limited, depending on regional interest and uptake, so ensure you contact the Enlighten team as soon as possible to register your interest and take the first steps towards becoming a Regional Centre of Excellence.

For more information, visit www.enlightensmiles.com, email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call the team on 0207 424 3270

For over 30 years CEREC® from Dentsply Sirona has provided a comprehensive and proven digital system for delivering restorations in a single visit. Now its applications are expanding and guided placement, restoration of implants and a variety of orthodontic solutions are also covered by this versatile system.

Offering clinicians even greater flexibility, the CEREC system has been opened up for the export of scan data in STL format. This creates new possibilities for clinicians by enabling data from CEREC digital impressions to be used in software products from other manufacturers, and allows them to send CEREC scans to a laboratory of their choice regardless of the software being used. Scan data can also be loaded into implant planning software from other manufacturers, providing clinicians with support in the preparation of implant procedures.

To find out more please contact Dentsply Sirona on 0800 072 3313 or visit www.dentsply.com/en-uk

Jaswinder Gill, Principal of Moonlight Dental Surgery, has been offering anterior alignment orthodontics since 2012. He enrolled on the 12-month IAS Advanced training course in 2015 and says:

“I was looking to take my skills to the next level so I could provide comprehensive orthodontics to adults and children who have been refused by the NHS. There are very few courses out there that offer this for GDPs, but the IAS Advanced came highly recommended.

“I had no idea what to expect, but training covered everything I wanted it to and more. I particularly liked that I could start comprehensive cases from day one, being mentored by Ross Hobson, a Specialist Orthodontist.

“The course was excellent – there is no other word for it. Ross is a brilliant teacher and mentor.

“I have absolutely gained confidence in my skills and I am now doing cases that I would have definitely referred this time last year.

“If you want to progress your orthodontic career as a GDP, then this is the course to do. It entails a lot of hard work and is not a walk in the park, but if orthodontics is your thing then it is thoroughly enjoyable and worth while.”

For more information on upcoming IAS Academy training courses, including the IAS Advanced,

please visit www.iasortho.com or call 0208 916 2024.

In support of soft tissue management

Johnson & Johnson, the makers of LISTERINE®, are delighted to present Professor Nicola West speaking on the topic of soft tissue management at this year’s BDA conference.

Professor West, Head of Periodontology, Professor and Honorary Consultant in Restorative Dentistry at the University of Bristol, will cover topics including managing the soft tissue health of your patients now, securing their future health, and delivering this within the constraints and demands of running a successful dental practice.

Delegates may attend Professor West’s presentation on Thursday 25th May at 14.15-15.15 or Friday 26th May at 11.45-12.45.

Johnson & Johnson are the makers of LISTERINE®, which has variants that are suitable for daily use as an adjunct to mechanical cleaning to help deliver an optimised daily prevention regimen. In addition the LISTERINE® Advanced Defence range is available to help dental professionals deliver advanced treatment outcomes for patients.

For further information, please visit stand C13 to speak to a member of the LISTERINE® Professional team.

The Association of Dental Groups (ADG) is delighted to announce that Teeth Team has been awarded the first ever Outstanding Innovation Award from the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD). “On behalf of the Association, I would like to congratulate Teeth Team on winning such a prestigious accolade – it is richly deserved,” comments David Worskett, Chair of the ADG.

Teeth Team provides a supervised daily tooth brushing programme, annual dental assessments and bi-annual applications of fluoride varnish to a number of nursery and primary schools. Originally delivering its programme within the City of Hull and East Riding areas, Teeth Team has expanded into North Yorkshire, Nottingham North, South Humberside and parts of Lincolnshire, with plans to expand further with the help of its excellent support network and various partners.

“As ever, our aim is to continue to set up and provide oral health care to as many children in disadvantaged regions as we can,” says Chris Groombridge (pictured below), Teeth Team’s Chair of Trustees. “I’m hoping that in obtaining this award, of which we are thrilled to have won, we will be able to extend our reach further still and make a difference to even more young lives.”

Described as an ‘excellent project’ and ‘clear winner’ by the BSPD Executive judging team, Teeth Team is a fine example of what can be achieved when a proactive and practical approach is taken on ground level. “In the case of children’s oral health, it is absolutely essential to go straight to the source,” Chris continues, “For it is action that will have an impact on children, not words.”

In recognition of its achievement, Teeth Team has been invited to make a presentation about its exceptional work at the upcoming Annual Conference and Scientific Meeting in September. “It is an absolute honour and a privilege to be given the opportunity to speak at such a prestigious event,” says Chris. “We love nothing more than to spread the word about what the charity delivers – we would shout it from the rooftops if we could – so it will be a great experience for everyone involved in Teeth Team.”

On the presentation David Worskett adds: “We look forward to Teeth Team’s presentation at BSPD’s 2017 conference, and wish the charity all the best with their work moving forward.”

For more information about the ADG visit www.dentalgroups.co.uk

The film was ‘Field of Dreams’ and, in it, an American corn farmer hears a voice telling him, “If you build it, he will come.” You may not have seen, or remember, the film, but the quote has morphed into popular culture, albeit in a changed form. “If you build it, they will come’ became a global catch phrase that is still repeated, even when it patently does not apply.

It may have worked a treat to entice the ghosts of deceased baseball stars to a cornfield in the film, but when it comes to growing your business it’s utter rubbish. And dangerous rubbish at that. You know you need a great website as the cornerstone of your marketing, but if you expect to ‘build it and they will come’, you’ll be left sitting staring at the phones, wondering why they’re not ringing.

Sure, in the early days of the internet, this approach would have worked, because there simply weren’t that many websites online. As things progressed, search engine optimisation (SEO) developed to help users find your website, and designers performed a cursory SEO sweep on sites prior to launch. However today, with over 1 billion websites on the web, even this isn’t good enough to get you found.

Today, good web designers incorporate SEO best practices into their designs from the start, giving you the best of function without sacrificing form. This should, at a minimum, include ensuring your site is fully-responsive and your content is optimised. But to help you truly stand out from the crowd, your marketing team should also be performing regular search engine elevation (SEE). This is an ongoing process of strategically refreshing your content to focus on keywords that highlight your chosen campaigns. Search engines love it, which means they’ll lift your site to the top of the search results.

Milkshake Dental Marketing is the only agency in the world to offer SEE, so put us to work for you by giving us a call on 01844 292086, visiting our website or connecting with us on social media (@MilkshakeDental).

We’ll ‘build it to make sure they come’!

In a 2014 study commissioned by Brand Science and Microsoft, the study shows that not only does online advertising deliver excellent ROI efficiency, but it also provides extra value to your other spend in the media. Can be read here [PDF].

In basic terms the report shows that the difference in ROI is striking when a campaign has an online element against those that do not have any online element. When online advertising is added into the mix, the return on investment is much improved.

From a dental point of view, this means that when a brand sponsors an event or runs a conference for their clients, the marketing campaign needs to cover all mediums.

Over recent years, this is the way the online marketing world has evolved. Brands within dentistry have been hesitant to spend all their budget on online marketing but will often use some of their budget online, to compliment campaigns in magazines, events they are hosting or to promote attendance at an exhibition.

Businesses can see that they need coverage across all mediums, their customers are constantly using and sharing digital content and therefore digital is becoming as important as non-digital channels when looking to achieve maximum ROI on their marketing spend.

Therefore, digital is certainly important in the marketing cycle and plays a part in helping produce results from non-digital media channels. This is another reason that online marketing is here to stay. 

Balraj Sekhon discusses the benefits of guided surgery to deliver predictable treatment outcomes

Although implant dentistry has evolved into one of the most predictable treatment alternatives for patients who are missing teeth, we are still striving to improve our surgical and restorative techniques. The foundation for all procedures should be a proper diagnosis to determine the appropriate treatment options.

To help take the guesswork out of the diagnostic phase the use of 3D imaging (CBCT) with interactive treatment planning software, such as coDiagnostiX™, aids the planning of implant placement, the design of surgical drill guides and the ultimate restoration. I have found that by incorporating a digital implant planning system and working closely with a lab who offer CAD/CAM production, I benefit from well-designed surgical drill guides and high-quality implant-borne restorations. This in turn, reduces complications and enhances the communication within the interdisciplinary team.

The use of CBCT and coDiagnostiX™ has greatly impacted my ability to diagnose in all dimensions, allowing a full appreciation of individual, patient-specific anatomy and a clear understanding of the existing quantity and quality of bone, trajectory of the alveolus, and location of vital structures. It also serves as a powerful communication tool for patients, colleagues, and with my lab of choice.

Digital workflow for implants
The ideal for me is to achieve prosthetically driven implant reconstruction. To achieve this, I need a complete understanding of the relationship between the tooth and the underlying bone. In addition, proper diagnosis may require working closely with a lab to create ‘virtual’ diagnostic wax-ups of the surgical guide and the proposed final restoration, allowing adjustments to be made to achieve the best possible outcome. Therefore, “it’s not the scan, it’s the plan” that becomes my driving force.

The coDiagnostiX™ system offers many options for diagnosis, consultation and seamless workflow integration. Virtual implants of known length and diameter can be simulated within the receptor site, establishing the proper trajectory of the implant within the cross-sectional image and in relation to the desired restorative option (i.e. screw- or cement-retained). Using advanced software features and the process of segmentation, the existing tooth root can be virtually extracted and the proposed implant with an abutment projection can then be positioned to emerge through the desired restorative result.

Balraj Sekhon - BDS (Manc), MJDF RCS (Lond), PGCert (UCLan), MSc Dental Implantology (Distinction)
Balraj graduated from the University of Manchester in 2003 and has since worked throughout Manchester providing the highest quality dental care. He is one of the principal dentists at Circle Dental. Balraj’s ethos is to treat every patient with the utmost care and provide the best evidence-based dentistry.

Since qualification he has been spent many hours learning from the best dentists in the country in the fields of restorative and implant dentistry. He has acquired the Diploma of Membership of the Joint Dental Faculties from the Royal College of Surgeons and a Masters Degree in Dental Implantology with Distinction from the University of Central Lancashire. Balraj is also a published author in the Journal of Operative Dentistry.

Balraj has studied dental implantology to the highest possible standard and currently works with a Yorkshire-based surgical team with Specialist surgeon, Dr Robert Dyas. He has a growing referral network of practices and has also managed problems encountered by other dentists. He has a keen interest in teaching and this has been recognised by his appointment as Educational Supervisor by the Northwest NHS Deanery.

For more information on case planning and guided surgery, contact Straumann on 01293 651230 or visit one of our sites:

straumann.co.uk
straumanndigitalperformance.co.uk
therevu.co.uk

Facebook: Straumann UK
Twitter: @StraumannUK

I’m Abeyna Jones -  the Co-Founder of Medic Footprints. (pictured above)

With a background of drastic career changes moving to South Africa (& back), switching from surgery to Occupational Medicine, and also working out how to manage my own various health problems along the way - I realised that my journey was not so unique, yet the topics were still relatively taboo amongst our profession.

Hence, having created Medic Footprints in 2014, I’m proud to say we’ve grown to a community of >10k.

We are now looking to expand further with the aim to support all medical professionals needing independent support networks focusing on career change and wellbeing.

Who Are We?

Medic Footprints seeks to provide medical professionals with the tools and resources to explore alternative careers in a supportive wellness environment.

We are a social enterprise for doctors, by doctors.

Are we encouraging doctors to leave medicine or dentistry? We’re not. But, we are encouraging doctors to explore their career options beyond the conventional confines of a hospital or clinic.

We help with providing ideas of what options there are out there for doctors and what sort of plan should be made, remembering that a doctor’s career doesn’t have to be in medicine.

What We Do.

Our mission statement is as follows:

• Raise the visibility of the wealth of careers available to doctors, beyond traditional medicine,

• Promote bespoke wellbeing initiatives for doctors

• Support doctors in achieving their true career potentials by developing invaluable skills beyond their clinical practice, essential for great medical leaders in any domain.

We organise and promote events in medicine, entrepreneurship and business and encourage doctors to reach out. A growing number of medical professionals are burnt out and exhausted from their stressful and tiring jobs - we are here to support exactly those people and build strong, meaningful networks of like-minded doctors.

Doctors tend to possess strong transferable skillsets, a passion for helping people and business minds, and we encourage these to be developed, explored and nurtured.

How you can get involved in our community?

Visit our website - medicfootprints.org - a huge free resource of information regarding career change for medical professionals

Join our free membership for updates on events, and activities. Our next event is a workshop about  Succeeding as a Medic in Business on 22nd April 2017 at the London Business School.

Write for us - we welcome contributions of all kinds in the world of alternative careers and wellbeing

Save the date for 27/8 Oct 2017 - our third annual extravaganza of alternative careers. Not your average conference!

Leianna Minty from Dental Inspirations discusses her experience of changing plan provider from Denplan to Patient Plan Direct

I joined the reception team at Dental Inspirations in 2011 when the decision had just been made to switch plan provider in order to cut administration fees and make operational cost savings. As such, one of my first tasks was to handle this transition. Whilst I had some knowledge of our dental plan, I had no experience of carrying out a move from one provider to another, but I have to say that Patient Plan Direct made the process very simple indeed.

Handling the move

We were given clear, concise and to the point training on what to say to patients and how to explain the move, which made us all feel confident in what we were doing and made the switch seamless. This left us with no uncertainty or any windows of mystery, meaning that the task was pretty simple really.

Of course, switching plan providers involved some effort from our side, but we have a good team in our practice so it was more than manageable. If you are concerned that there will be a lot of work involved in switching plan provider, my advice is not to worry. We simply sent out letters to patients explaining the move and the long term benefit to them as well as the practice and they signed new direct debit mandates under our new practice-branded plan at their next appointments. This is a process Patient Plan Direct now fully manages on behalf of practices, making the process even easier than when we made the move six years ago. There are a range of options of how Patient Plan Direct can manage the transition to best suit your practice and patient relationships.

The team at Patient Plan Direct offer so much support and it really helps that I deal with the same people every time I have an enquiry. The client support team explain things very well and as a practice we've built up a relationship with them, as well as our dedicated business development manager – Carole. The Patient Plan Direct team feel like an extended part of the Dental Inspirations team.

When new team members join our practice there are no problems at all getting them up to speed with our dental plans and the Patient Plan Direct system because its so simple, but if they have any questions it's just a case of phoning Patient Plan Direct who take the time to explain everything or come in practice to deliver training.

Whilst any issues or queries are few and far between, as soon as anything is flagged, Patient Plan Direct resolve things very quickly. In fact, in my role I have to deal with a lot of different companies and suppliers and I have to say that Patient Plan Direct cause me the least stress out of all of them, they are a pleasure to work with.

Benefits for everyone

For us, alongside huge cost savings versus the administration fees we were charged by our previous plan provider, another big benefit of the move is the fact that we now handle patient enquiries in our own practice, rather than them having to contact a third party. This means we can offer a much more personal service that our patients really appreciate, while we also have more control over the way things are handled and subsequently monitored. Plus, Patient Plan Direct’s service seems to continually improve. For example they have enhanced their supplementary Worldwide Dental A&E cover for patients twice in the past couple of years, benefiting our existing plan patients and making our plans even more attractive for any patients not already on plan.

As a practice, the benefits of switching plan provider were very clear; in the long-term we would be able to offer our patients a lower cost, more affordable, practice-branded plan without running at a loss ourselves thanks to a lower admin fee that we incur as a practice. We're simply offering an almost identical product without having to pay for the big name brand.

What we've found six years on since the move is that the plans we now offer for any new patients sell themselves because the price point is so good, patients ask us about our plans and all we need to do is sign them up. I didn't want my reception team to feel like they were in a sales role, that's not what we're about at Dental Inspirations, and I really like that our staff don't feel pressurised to sell.

Leianna's advice

If you're unhappy with your existing plan provider, or you’re looking for ways to save money for the practice and your patients, I would 100% recommend Patient Plan Direct due to the high level of support they provide and the tailored plans they create to suit your practice. Switching over really isn't as scary as it might initially seem, my advice is to overcome that fear! At Dental Inspirations we have no regrets. Patient retention during the transition from our previous plan provider was very high and we are constantly adding new patients to our plans all the time.

Leianna Minty is the practice manager at Dental Inspirations in Aberdeen, providing the highest quality dentistry in a caring, relaxed and professional environment.

Patient Plan Direct offers a low cost, simple, flexible and practice-branded solution to running patient payment plans, with a focus on delivering first-class support and expert advice to ensure you reach your plan objectives. For more information please visit www.patientplandirect.com, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or call 0844 848 6888.

Simplyhealth is delighted to announce today that it is investing £137k into Teeth Team, a nationally-recognised, award-winning child oral health improvement programme.

Teeth Team, which was set up in 2010 in Hull, works to improve the oral health of children in socially deprived communities. The investment from Simplyhealth will enable Teeth Team to continue its work and roll out its programme to an additional 50 schools in 2017. In addition, Simplyhealth Professionals and its member dentists will be proactively involved in delivering the programme as it expands.

With charitable giving at the heart of the healthcare organisation, Simplyhealth is passionate about supporting charities and organisations that are focused on making a difference to the everyday health of people.

In the last two years, Teeth Team has recorded a reduction of 19.8% in local children experiencing dental extractions under general anaesthetic. The oral health survey for five-year-old children 2014-15 in Hull, carried out by Public Health England Survey (DPH), recorded an improvement from 43.4% to 37.8%.

Chris Groombridge, Chair of Trustees for Teeth Team, said: “We are absolutely delighted to receive this momentous support and investment from Simplyhealth to our charity. To be working in partnership on this level means that moving forward we can expand the programme into scores of new schools in other areas of need and continue to make a real different in child oral health.

“What is important about this partnership is that it’s not just financial – it is a commitment to the charity on other levels and grows our network of support as we push to take this essential programme national.”

Last month Teeth Team won the Outstanding Innovation Award 2017 from the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD). The programme was described as “excellent” and a “clear winner” by the BSPD Executive judges and as the prize the charity will present to the Annual Conference and Scientific meeting to be held in Manchester in September.

Henry Clover, Director of Dental Policy at Simplyhealth Professionals, said: “We are incredibly excited about being involved with Teeth Team. Simplyhealth Professionals is ideally placed to provide practical, proactive support through our member dentists, some of whom will have the opportunity to visit these schools and help children understand the importance of preventive oral health care through the Teeth Team programme.”

Simplyhealth has pledged to donate 10% of pre-tax profits to health-related charitable causes in 2017. Roger Cotton, Head of Charitable Giving at Simplyhealth, said: “This programme presents a great opportunity to provide hard evidence that demonstrates the effectiveness of the ‘prevention’ approach to better oral health amongst the five- to nine-year-old age group. In the longer-term, we also hope that the accumulating evidence as the project expands can be used to lobby government and encourage it to divert a percentage of the savings realised by Teeth Team for the NHS to help fund further expansion of the project to other areas and schools.”

For more information about Teeth Team, please contact:

Emma Ideson, Teeth Team Press Officer

T: 07976 512340 E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. W: www.teethteam.org.uk

Teeth Team, 543-549 Anlaby Road, Hull, HU3 6HP

Dental Showcase Is Back……And Is Bigger Than Ever!

Technology is constantly evolving and chances are it will have been a few years since you invested in new equipment for the practice.  Your existing tools might be working just fine, and may not ever become obsolete, but aren’t you just a teeny weeny bit intrigued to find out just what’s out there and how it might assist you in your day-to-day work?  At this year’s Dental Showcase you really will gain an insight into the latest innovation in the industry.

Could New ‘Gear’ Move Your Practice ‘Up A Gear’?

To use a common analogy, if you’ve looked after your iPhone 4 it will still be perfectly functional and you may be perfectly happy with it, but what if you had an iPhone 7 in your hand and could see the advanced camera, hear the improved audio, feel the streamlined shape and learn about the better battery life not to mention the fact that it was water resistant!  Well, at Dental Showcase you have the opportunity to see, hear, feel and learn about all that’s new in dentistry.  Moreover, as everything is under one roof you can comfortably do it all in a day, and earn yourself some valuable CPD in the process.

Tomorrow’s World

New to this year’s Dental Showcase will be the Dental Surgery of The Future.  Purpose built for the show it will include a reception area, built to the highest specification, a patient information zone and a fully functioning surgery, equipped with only the very latest technology.  The futuristic surgery will have seating, so that delegates can relax during keynote speeches and demonstrations.  As well as learning about what’s new in the industry, you will also be able to listen to talks on topics such as handling medical emergencies, 3D printing, business management matters and IRMER guidelines.  Delegates will, of course, have the opportunity to play with all the new gadgets and gizmos in the surgery!

Education….The Passport To The Future

Once you’ve done a little ‘window shopping’ or maybe even bagged yourself an exclusive Showcase bargain, you might like to spend some time freshening up your CPD.  The latest clinical content, delivered by the biggest names in the academic community, will be presented at the Dental Update Theatre.  The programme, which will be chaired by the charismatic but also very pragmatic Professor Trevor Burke, will give you an unrivalled insight into the latest research.  The scope of the programme will be wide, but common to all presentations will be the need to provide you with education, which you will be able to apply within your practice.  Dental Update firmly believes that their lectures should focus on matters that impact the day-to-day lives of practices up and down the country.  Priority entry will be given to Dental Update subscribers.

Further Information can be found on - www.dentalshowcase.com

Dental Showcase

-          Dates – 19-21 October 2017

-          Venue – Birmingham NEC

-          Exclusively Featuring:

o   The Surgery of the Future

o   Dental Update Theatre

For more information on this release please contact:

Michelle Hurd, AB Communications, Tel: (020) 8399 6730, E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

In Part 9 of this series, we take a look at engagement and the number of options we have to engage with potential customers. 

Online advertising lets you know a customer's exact level of engagement. You can see how many impressions and clicks an ad has and where the ad has been clicked. This again gives you the marketer, a lot more information than ever before.

Although the click to a landing page is a form of interaction and engagement, the measure of engagement is often based on other criteria and seen as a compliment or an alternative to measuring the traditional click which has been historically the first form of engagement taken into account. So this means this could be via content, ads or audience interaction.

You therefore can see what has been effective for your product or brand in achieving engagement; comments, impressions, shares, recommendations, social media, contact forms, competition entries etc

You might have circulation and readership data for a print publication, but you can’t know how much time customers spend interacting with your ad, how much time they spent on your website, if they researched more of your products, and whether that ad led to conversions. In fact, with print it is impossible to even see if someone has seen the ad in the magazine. Print advertising is often just following the old adage of “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half.” (John Wanamaker (1838-1922) At least with online ads, you get to see how much engagement there has been.

An online presence gives you all of a whole range of valuable data and places you in a position to learn where your most engaged prospects live, work or interact. With a bit of research you can find out where your potential customers congregate, whether that is a forum, social media or a marketplace like Amazon or Ebay.

This access to data means you can start to reach people where they are most engaged and where they are genuinely interested in receiving your message.

When using social media, online ad engagement can then be used for engagement retargeting, which is now used by all major retailers and marketplace sites.

To summarise this part  of the series, online advertising has all the right skills not only to attract your potential customers but to get them properly engaged and totally involved in what product or service you are looking to offer. Online advertising opens a world or opportunity and options to get your client engaged within your story. 

If someone makes a criminal allegation against you, whether true or false, you will be subject to a police investigation. This will no doubt be a daunting experience for you. In this article we guide you through the process and give you some important advice to help you protect your registration as a dentist.

At the police station:

It is a fallacy that only those who have done something wrong need to seek the advice of a lawyer. If you are facing criminal allegations the first thing you should do is seek legal advice from a criminal defence specialist solicitor. Good representation at an early stage will ensure your rights are protected, and can in some circumstances even prevent criminal charges being pursued. Facing a criminal allegation can be one of the most stressful events of your life, you do not need to face it alone.

The police can choose to either conduct an interview following arrest, or on a voluntary basis – commonly referred to as “caution plus three”. An interview after arrest means that you will be detained at the police station and are not at liberty to leave until the police or courts allow it. Under “caution plus three” is less draconian, and means that you are free to leave at any time as you will not be arrested. Everyone who attends for a police interview, whether, voluntary or under arrest, has the right to free and independent legal advice.

Can I choose my own solicitor?

Yes, if you are given notice of the interview it is important to research and identify an appropriately qualified lawyer.  However, if you are arrested unexpectedly and are not able to request your own lawyer, you will be offered the assistance of a “duty solicitor”. There is a duty solicitor on call at all times to provide assistance in the police station.

When you are arrested, and again at the beginning of your interview, you will be read the police caution:

“You do not have to say anything. But it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in Court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.”

There may be circumstances when it is appropriate to answer “no comment” to questions being asked by the police officer. For example, where there is in fact limited evidence that you were present or have participated in a crime and the police are essentially “fishing” for incriminating information. Alternatively, if you do not feel comfortable or confident in answering all questions put to you, it is possible to provide a prepared statement setting out the terms of your defence. If this is done properly then it is unlikely a jury would be invited to draw an adverse inference as a result of your failure to answer all questions put.

Whilst legal advice and assistance is free and available to everyone in a police station, regardless of their means, you can choose to instruct a solicitor on a private paying basis, if for example you wish to have a consultation with them in advance of the interview.

It is very important that you make clear to your solicitor that you are a dentist, and that any police action against you could have serious consequences on your registration with the GDC. You must bear in mind that what you say to the police may be used in any later fitness to practice hearing. It can be a difficult balance to strike in providing information that offers a defence to a criminal allegation, but will not inadvertently leave you open to disciplinary action with the GDC. A defence of innocent incompetence to an allegation of fraud for example, may amount to a breach of the GDC Standards for the Dental Team.

If you did use the duty solicitor at the police station but were not happy with their service you are not obliged to continue to be represented by them.

Court Proceedings

Low level offending, such as common assault, shop lifting and traffic offences are all dealt with at the magistrates’ court. Your case will be heard by either 3 magistrates (lay people) or a District Judge. There is unfortunately very limited rights to anonymity before the criminal courts, and your name will appear on the court lists regardless of whether you are found guilty or not guilty.

Legal aid is available in the magistrates’ court, but it is both means and merits tested. The threshold for automatic financial eligibility is income under £12,475 per annum, as such most dentists will not be eligible for legal aid. When paying privately, it is important to bear in mind that even if you are found not guilty you will not be reimbursed for all your legal costs. Any reimbursement is at the legal aid rate, which is very low, and is dependent on you having applied for and been refused legal aid at the outset. Some insurance policies will cover criminal allegations, particularly where they are related to professional misconduct charges. It is always worth speaking to your insurers to find out what they will cover at the outset and remember you have the freedom to choose your own solicitor to represent you under such cover, you do not need to rely on the solicitors appointed by the insurers.

In the magistrates court you can be represented by either a solicitor or a barrister. It is worth considering very carefully the trial experience of the person who is going to represent you. Do not be afraid to ask what their experience is and whether they have dealt with similar cases in the past.

More serious offences are dealt with at the Crown Court. Legal aid is technically available for everyone who appears before the Crown Court, however, applicants have to make a contribution towards their legal costs of up to £900 per month, which is capped dependent upon the seriousness of the offence. For more serious offences you are likely to have the benefit of both a solicitor and an advocate representing you; this can be either a barrister or solicitor advocate.   Your solicitor should discuss their choice of advocate with you before they are instructed to ensure that you are happy with their choice of representative.

If I have been arrested but not charged with any criminal offence should I notify the GDC?

If you are arrested but not charged with any offence there is no obligation to inform the GDC. However, if you are charged, but not yet convicted, of an offence anywhere in the world, you will need to inform the GDC. Similarly, if you are given a formal ‘police caution’ (not the same as the caution above, but a warning from the police regarding behaviour following an admission of guilt), or accept a penalty notice for disorderly behaviour, then you will need to let the GDC know.

If you receive a fixed penalty notice for a driving offence or antisocial behaviour order, you will not need to inform the GDC.

When do I need to inform the GDC of criminal convictions/cautions?

Generally dental care professionals do need to inform the GDC immediately if they are convicted of a criminal offence. However, if you are registering with the GDC you do not need to inform them of a conviction if it is considered “protected”.

• This means it is not a “listed offence” under S2A(5) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (amended)
• A custodial sentence was not imposed
• The individual has no other convictions
• It was received either when the individual was under 18 and at least 5 years and 6 months has passed, or it was committed when the individual was over 18 and at least 11 years has passed.
• If you have a police caution that does not relate to a listed offence, and was given either when the individual was under 18 and at least 2 years has passed, or it was committed when the individual was over 18 and at least 6 years has passed.

If I am convicted of a criminal offence will I automatically face fitness to practice proceedings?

All criminal convictions and cautions will be referred to the GDC Fitness Practice department for consideration. The GDC will then consider whether the offence committed involved a departure from the high standards required of dental professionals and whether it impacts on their fitness to practice. Consideration will also be given to the dentist’s character and conduct since the commission of the offence. The GDC will assess the level of risk that the conviction or caution will have on protecting the public and maintaining confidence in the profession.

Do I have to declare my conviction to future employers?

Whether you need to declare your convictions to your employers will depend on whether it is considered ‘spent’. The rules are complicated and vary depending upon the type of conviction you have and the reason you are being asked to provide the information. For instance, an enhanced criminal records check is usually required for all jobs that involve working with children, so any convictions, including those that are ‘spent’, will usually have to be declared. If in doubt, ask an expert!

If you or someone you know has been contacted by the police, or faces criminal charges, call our criminal team on 020 7388 1658. Our dental experts work in conjunction with our criminal lawyers to ensure you have the best possible representation to protect both your personal, but also your professional life.

Julia Furley, Barrister

As the prevalence of dementia in the UK increases, and researchers struggle to find concrete evidence for the possible causes of the disease, controversial studies have emerged hypothesising that dental X-rays could be the source of the infamous disorder. With no evidence to support this claim, however, and no indication that research can actually be conducted to prove such a theory, it would, perhaps, be more pertinent for professionals to reverse their concerns and focus instead on the effects diagnostic imaging can have on people currently living with dementia.

Presently, there is next to no research on how the experience of undergoing an X-ray can affect dementia patients both emotionally and psychologically, apart from one study funded by the Clinical Research Fellowship titled “Exploring the experiences of diagnostic imaging for people with dementia”, which has not yet published its findings.[i] The project hopes to improve understanding through interviews with patients and their carers as well as develop recommendations for practice change.

As it stands, there are advice pathways in place to steer professionals in the right direction – including Nice guidelines (CG42)[ii] and recommendations from the Society of Radiographers –[iii] with some consideration placed on support and intervention methods. However, it is also important to examine ways in which distress, confusion and discomfort can be minimised within the dental practice.  

To do so, it is necessary to consider how the patient might feel before, during and after the process. Before the X-ray is taken, for instance, the patient is required to remove all jewellery, dentures, eyewear and any other metal objects or clothing that might interfere with the images, which can be an ordeal in itself for someone living with dementia. Indeed, depending on the level of their understanding, they might not be able to comprehend why you are removing their wedding ring, or why they aren’t allowed to have their glasses, without which, they cannot see.

That’s not to mention the confusion the patient might feel when the machine is positioned close to the body. Plus, if the equipment is big, bulky or intimidating in appearance, there is a possibility that the experience could induce anxiety or fear.

Emotional and psychological distress could occur during the process too, especially if the patient is unable to keep still and the images need to be retaken. Not only could this induce further feelings of anxiety in a situation that is already stressful for the patient, but it also puts the patient at risk of increased radiation exposure.

It is important to take into consideration the waiting time that is required after the examination is complete to check if all the necessary images have been obtained. If the equipment does not enable the user to view the images immediately, there is a chance that the patient could become impatient or agitated, which could lead to challenging behaviour. 

To minimise such risks and create an experience that is as positive and comfortable as possible, there are several measures that could be implemented within the dental practice. One potential strategy could be to alter protocol and develop a specialist system specifically for patients with dementia – a service that is already being developed within innovative hospitals and clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). The Mid Essex CCG, for instance, funds a service affiliated with the national charity Carers Trust, which has developed a pathway that enables patients with dementia who require an X-ray to have direct access to radiology services.[iv] If practices were to implement a similar protocol and allow patients to bypass the waiting room, it could help the patient to feel more relaxed and minimise the likelihood of agitation and distress from occurring.

A clinician’s understanding and attitude towards the disease could also affect patients’ overall X-ray experience. Indeed, one study found that the approach of participating radiographers towards people with dementia was largely of a negative nature, especially from staff with fewer than 10 years’ work experience.[v] With better training, and an increased awareness of the affects of dementia, clinicians could help minimise agitation and behavioural symptoms during the X-ray process.[vi]

Lastly, the machine itself can have a huge impact on the outcome of the appointment and the patient’s experience. By using an X-ray unit such as the RXDC Hypersphere+ from RPA Dental, that provides a larger source-to-skin distance, generates consistently sharp images and reduces the irradiated surface area – and therefore exposure – practices could improve negative elements of the experience.

While it is clear that evidence is needed to discover more on how an X-ray could affect patients with dementia both emotionally and psychologically, there are practical solutions that practices can implement that could help make a difference. Nobody can know for sure what the cause of dementia is, nor can they reverse its effects, but it’s not too late to change the way patients live with it.

For more information, contact RPA Dental on 08000 933 975 or visit the website www.dental-equipment.co.uk

**** This article has been amended on the 15th of March ****

How will the Spring Budget affect you?

On 8^th March 2017, Chancellor Philip Hammond presented his first – and allegedly last – Spring Budget, outlining the UK’s plans for spending and borrowing as well as proposed changes to taxation. As always, the Budget was met with mixed reactions, though it would be fair to say that it was moderately upbeat considering recent events and the uncertainty surrounding Brexit.

Among other things, the Chancellor allocated extra money to health and social care services, free schools and addressed housing, transport and domestic violence issues, so the Budget did have many redeeming features. The fact that the UK was the second-fastest growing economy in the G7 in 2016 and the growth forecast for 2017 has been raised from 1.4 per cent to 2 per cent is also extremely good news. What many dentists will want to know, however, is how will the recent announcements affect them?

Firstly, the Government has imposed a new reform that will decrease the tax-free allowance on share dividends from £5,000 to £2,000; in other words, shareholders and company owners will benefit less from receiving a dividend. If you operate as an incorporated business you may well be affected by this, though it is likely the change will be relatively insignificant to your overall take-home.

Another key measure that was introduced to tackle tax avoidance and aggressive tax planning, is the plan to apply a 25 per cent transfer charge to qualifying recognised overseas pension schemes. Combined, these measures will make mitigating tax much harder moving forward. 

The good news is that personal tax-free allowance will increase this year to £11,500 from £11,000 as planned, and again to £12,500 by 2020. Disappointingly, business rates relief will remain the same, but after the amount of changes announced in 2016 we can’t be too shocked at the Chancellor’s decision. What he did say on the matter is that no business losing small business rate relief will see their bill increase by more than £50, though that will likely prove to be a small comfort for those hoping for bigger change.

Of course, there are other positives to have come out of the Spring Budget, including the fact that vehicle exercise duty rates and the HGV Road User Levy has been frozen for another year. With fears rising about potential increases in dental materials due to Brexit, no change in this area is the best that can be hoped for, because once their prices rise, so will yours!

Regulation concerning alcohol, tobacco and sugar should also be celebrated, as this could help to improve patients’ oral health. Tobacco, for instance, will rise by 2 per cent above Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation, which will cost patients an extra 35p for a packet of 20 cigarettes. As for beer, cider, wine and spirits, costs will increase in line with RPI inflation, which will result in a rise of 2p on a pint of beer, 1p on a pint of cider, 36p on a bottle of whiskey and 32p on a bottle of gin.

Perhaps one of the most victorious announcements of all is that the much anticipated sugar tax will go ahead as planned at a rate of 18p per litre where there is more than five grams of sugar per 100ml, and 24p per litre where there is more than eight grams or more of sugar per 100ml. Should this move prove successful, the profession will hopefully begin to see improvements in children’s oral health.

One of the bigger talking points to have come from the Spring Budget is the Government’s U-turn on plans to increase Class 4 National Insurance Contributions for self-employed people. Originally meant to increase from 9 per cent to 10 per cent in April 2018 and again to 11 per cent in 2019, it has since been dropped after the Chancellor faced backlash by Conservative backbenchers. The proposal to scrap Class 2 National Insurance in April 2018 is still set to go ahead.

For all of the drama that occurred afterwards, though, it wasn't a particularly groundbreaking Budget, nor will it have a huge impact on dentists. There will be fewer opportunities to mitigate tax moving forward, but with National Insurance Class 4 rates now set to remain the same, it is not as bad as it could have been. If you are thinking of maximising the legitimate tax reliefs available or simply want to find out more about how the Budget could affect you, get in touch with your Independent Financial Adviser.

For more information please call 0845 345 5060, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit www.money4dentists.com

So, did you do anything special for World Play Your Ukelele Day? Lame Duck Day? Wave All Your Fingers at Your Neighbours Day? No, we’re not kidding - these are all ‘special days’ that were celebrated last month. You may think it’s all getting a bit much, with several special calls to action competing for every single day of the year. But we’d ask you to think again, because the flip side is that these are all opportunities for your marketing to take a free ride on social media.

Step out of your dental scrubs for a minute and see things from your patients’ perspective. Most of them are logging on and off social media pretty much all day long. And the posts they’re sharing are the ones that catch their imagination, which probably doesn’t include your strict reminder to floss twice daily. So how do you grab their interest? Have fun and be engaging. Choose a few special occasion days and tie them into your practice, making them highly shareable, whilst still working for you.

An example? 2^nd March was National Old Stuff Day, so why not ask your followers what they’re planning to recycle or throw out and, at the same time, remind them to replace their old toothbrush? 2^nd March was also National Book Day, a perfect time to ask your patients who their favourite fictional dentist is (and remind them to ‘like’ and ‘share’ if YOU are their favourite real dentist)! Anything that gets them to engage with you and, ideally, share your post, is marketing gold. Your posts will be seen by not only your followers, but everyone searching for the associated hashtag. And, best of all, it’s free.

Oh and don’t forget the special weeks and months too! Most, if not all, are conveniently indexed on https://www.awarenessdays.co.uk (for more serious causes) and https://www.daysoftheyear.com (for the more whimsical) so why not put a few on your social media calendar and ride those hashtags to success?

And if you don’t have time for such shenanigans, don’t worry - we have two dedicated social media gurus on staff whose job it is to post fun and engaging content for you (yes, they do love their work). So give us a call on 01844 292086, visit our website (link to https://milkshakedental.co.uk) or connect with us on social media (@MilkshakeDental) and we’ll soon have you participating in Quirky Country Music Song Titles Day on 27^th March (just joking)!

Connect Dental Campus (connectdentalcampus.co.uk) is the latest online resource from Henry Schein Dental. Featuring an array of on-demand webinars, live webinars, product video guides and informative articles, this site tackles every topic that clinicians and technicians need to explore if they want to get ahead in the exciting world of digital dentistry.

With a focus on implants, CAD/CAM, digital planning, intraoral scanning, restorative materials and more, there is something for everyone involved in the digital workflow, regardless of whether you work in practice or a laboratory. On-demand webinars feature highly experienced and engaging speakers, all experts in their fields, discussing all aspects of the digital workflow, implant planning, digital processes and CAD/CAM techniques.

In collaboration with industry partners 3Shape and Dentsply Sirona, visitors to the site can also learn from a wide selection of step-by-step video tutorial guides on digital implant planning, surgical guide solutions, shade matching and follow a variety of subjects covering CEREC®’s increasing clinical applications. This on-demand feature means these resources are available to view at a time that suits everyone.

Find out what Connect Dental Campus has to offer. Register for FREE today at connectdentalcampus.co.uk or call 01634 878750 for more information.

henryschein.co.uk

Twitter: @HenryScheinUK

Facebook: HenryScheinUK

The image above greeted me this morning in an email from Google. The email read “With last week's announcement of YouTube TV, the lines between TV and online video continue to blur.”

Read more here. I thought this was perfectly linked to part 8 of the blog on Reach and how attracting interest in your product or service needs to incorporate so many different mediums to be effective. 

So according to Google, people are watching less live TV and turning to their computers, smartphones or tablets for their favorite shows, music, and to access their news.

Marketing professionals therefore need to make sure that they are staying in front of their customers and tracking their behaviour. So as all the latest stats suggest, your customers are online, so you should be too, and sooner rather than later!

Moving online gives you access to a global audience (if that is your target) and it means your ads can be working for you 24 hours a day. The options are practically limitless when it comes to your reach capabilities when you take your campaign online.

This means that your reach increases dramatically once you start the online advertising journey, as discussed previously you have a lot more control over your ads and they are building up impressions and clicks 24 hours a day, reaching unique 

Online advertising enables you to promote your products and services locally, or even worldwide. With the print media you can only reach fix number of customers limited to a certain location, but online offers you a global opportunity and certainly a larger number of options than has ever been possible before.

So with a modern marketing plan, your reach can be greater than ever before. Your online advertising plan can incorporate social media, video, blogs, plus of course specialist sites for your particular niche. Utilising all these methods of retargeting, means you can reach your target audience a number of times a month and hopefully get your message across to your desired audience.

Thanks for reading.

Part 7 on Affordability Here.

Established since 1997, GDPUK.com continues to go from strength to strength. 

Since moving to our present site in 2008, the forum has had over 22,000 topics created. The 22,000 topics have received over 250,000 replies! That is 11.3 replies per topic created, which is something that is quite incredible and shows the amount of knoweledge and opinion shared on the forum pages day in and day out. This makes the forum, unique in UK Dentistry. It is also all fully searchable. 

GDPUK also continues to post daily news and a number of weekly blogs which receive thousands of readers. We love keeping UK Dentists, upto date with what is happening in UK Dentistry.

Thanks again to all our readers who help to keep the site growing and improving.

The site continues to be a fantastic resource for the whole dental community and is free to join. Register here and join over 10,000 colleagues in discussing Dentistry in the UK, whilst also learning and sharing about everything Dentistry.

We are currently running an offer for advertising on GDPUK in April and May. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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Many of your patients will have chosen implants to replace a missing tooth or teeth.

The stability of their implant will depend, in no small part, to the quality of self-care in between appointments.

Tandex has a range of brushes and other adjunctive products to answer all your implant patients’ needs. For example, the FLEXI™ is an interdental brush available in nine different sizes for complex implant spaces. The SOLO^™ interspace brush will clean efficiently around critical points and give easy access around implants too. Used with a non-abrasive toothpaste, such as Tandex GEL^™, your patients will comfortably be able to remove the maximum amount of plaque and bacteria from all surfaces.

Proper cleaning will keep the implant stable and help avoid future complications, such as peri-implant mucositis, which can lead to peri-implantitis if left unchecked.

A simple routine performed twice a day will protect your patients’ investment. Recommend Tandex to your implant patients, so they can enjoy optimal oral health and implant stability for as long as possible.

For more information on Tandex’s range of products, 
visit www.tandex.dk or visit the facebook page:

Tandex Facebook

When Henry and Jane McFarlane sold their practice in Burnham-on-Crouch, they decided to utilise the services of Dental Elite. When asked about it, Henry commented:

“Having gone to one of their lectures, I knew what documents were needed to complete due diligence. As such, we made sure that 95 per cent of the paperwork was ready before the practice even went on the market – and I would strongly advise others to do the same. We were in contact with Leah Turner, our representative for some years before we went to market; she helped us enormously in maximising the value of our practice.

“Leah was more than helpful with all the paperwork and was very positive, which is exactly what we needed in such a stressful situation.

“Helen, one of Dental Elite’s administrative staff, was also amazing. If we ever needed anything she would sort it immediately, and was great at problem solving quickly and efficiently – we really have got nothing but praise for the team.”

To view Henry and Jane’s interview in full, go online today.

For more information contact Dental Elite. Visit www.dentalelite.co.uk, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 01788 545 900

Balraj Sekhon highlights two cases to illustrate the benefits of guided surgery

As a general dentist, I have found using advanced implant planning software such as coDiagnostiX™ to be very beneficial and I have been using it fully for about a year now. I don't have a CT scanner in-house (it would be difficult for me to justify the costs as a mixed practice), so we refer our patients to a local scan centre and they send us an open file scan that we can place into the software. Once in the coDiagnostiX^TM system we can take the various measurements and assess the best placement for the implant.

coDiagnostiX^TM is an investment in terms of direct cost and time to gain the depth of knowledge to fully utilise all the elements and tools in the system. However, I firmly believe it improves the patient journey, delivers a more efficient surgery process, reduces stress, and ultimately delivers better dentistry.

Case example 1 using Straumann coDiagnostiX^TM

Replacement of two posterior teeth with screw-retained crowns.

Case example 2 using Straumann coDiagnostiX^TM

Replacement of upper left central incisor with screw retained crown.

Balraj Sekhon - BDS (Manc), MJDF RCS (Lond), PGCert (UCLan), MSc Dental Implantology (Distinction)

Balraj graduated from the University of Manchester in 2003 and has since worked throughout Manchester providing the highest quality dental care. He is one of the principal dentists at Circle Dental. Balraj’s ethos is to treat every patient with the utmost care and provide the best evidence-based dentistry.

Balraj has studied dental implantology to the highest possible standard and currently works with a Yorkshire-based surgical team with Specialist surgeon, Dr Robert Dyas. He has a growing referral network of practices and has also managed problems encountered by other dentists. He has a keen interest in teaching and this has been recognised by his appointment as Educational Supervisor by the Northwest NHS Deanery.

For more information on case planning and guided surgery, contact Straumann on 01293 651230 or visit one of our sites:

straumann.co.uk

straumanndigitalperformance.co.uk

therevu.co.uk

Facebook: Straumann UK

Twitter: @StraumannUK

“The NHS is safe in our hands. The elderly are safe in our hands. The sick are safe in our hands. The surgeons are safe in our hands. The nurses are safe in our hands. The doctors are safe in our hands. The dentists are safe in our hands.”

Margaret Thatcher, 1983.

I remember thinking that when Margaret Thatcher said those words, written by speechwriter John O’Sullivan, that it was thoughtful of a politician to mention dentists. Thoughtful and unbelievable.

The use of the ‘Epistrophe’, the rhetorical tool of repeating of a word or phrase at the end of each sentence was used to echo Churchill’s ‘Anaphora’ of “We shall fight them etc”. Rhetoric has given way to the sound bite of, “The NHS is safe in our hands” which has always been Fake News or as my schoolteachers would have called it “Lies”.

The majority of politicians when given the opportunity have repeated the “safe hands” mantra. I wondered if it was a stock phrase they taught you at MP elocution school along with, “Hard working families” and "Education, education, education”.

“La-La Land” has been defined as “a euphoric dreamlike mental state detached from the harsher realities of life”. Few dentist fall into that category but I believe there are many who may hope: “To think that things that are completely impossible might happen, rather than understanding how things really are”.

A definition of madness is to do the same thing again and again hoping for a different result. Since Mrs Thatcher, governments of every hue have sought to undermine the dental profession by repeated assaults and insults both specific and general.

In the UK, like the majority of countries, most routine dentistry is provided by small businesses with the owners taking the financial risk of failure but also any profits from success. For years there was a 3-way set up, patient, dentist and NHS; the first paid the second the fees that were decided by the third that also set the rules. There was the possibility of competition, expansion and genuine entrepreneurship within the system. 2006 changed much of that.

The 2015 saw the Tories return to government free of their Lib-Dem coalition partners with talk of SMEs (Small and medium sized enterprises) being the “lifeblood of the economy”. Promises were made of more investment in super-fast broadband for entrepreneurs, a review of benefits for the self-employed and a trebling for the start-up loans programme.

A commitment was made by Prime Minister David Cameron (remember him?) to, “slash red tape” and to change employment laws to enable greater competition. One promise that was kept was for referendum, an excuse for any and all procrastination for the foreseeable future.

Cameron not only promised “the NHS is safe in our hands”, but also, “there will be no top down re-organisation” before letting Andrew Lansley set about things like a drunken bull manoeuvring a JCB in china shop.

The (genuine) news that the Inland Revenue’s “Make Tax Digital” (MTD) plans will mean all self employed individuals and small businesses having to make some form of tax return and payment on a quarterly basis hardly bodes well for dentists looking to reduce their costs. It will involve far more time and increase accountancy fees.

Changes in Business Rates will have a profound effect on many businesses, with London rates set to rise by 35.5% over the next two years. The fact is these changes should be made every 5 years but were delayed from 2015 so as not to interfere (i.e. prove unpopular) with the general election is further evidence of interference with the truth. Mrs May quickly promised help, then admitted there is no more money.

For years the GDC said that they could not make any changes and an act of parliament was required. This happened in late 2015, I am not sure that anyone has felt the benefits of “a more streamlined complaints system with timelier decisions, and with appropriate safeguards for both patients and dental professionals”.

Finally on the Fake News front that (new) NHS contract. As the BDA says, “The 2006 dental contract is not fit for purpose. It rewards dentists for hitting government targets for treatment and repair, not for improving their patients’ oral health.

In the 2010 general election, the opposition Conservative manifesto pledged a new dentistry contract. The coalition agreement – struck between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats – pledged the contract would be introduced by the next election, in 2015.

In August 2016 Lord Prior said, “I believe that we expect the new contract to be introduced fully in 2018.”

And lawyer, John Grant ,wrote after yet another debate on the proposed contract.

“At some point there will be a new contract, but at present no one knows at all what this is going to look like.

When it does come in the government – no matter which party is in power – is going to want an awful lot more from dentists and in return is going to pay significantly less.”

If you think things can only get better (see 1997) then you are not only living in La-La Land but still expecting it to win the Best Film Oscar.

With over 100 years’ clinical and business experience, Wrights is one of the oldest established full service dental suppliers of top quality products at competitive prices.

Exhibiting on stand F10 and F11 at the Scottish Dental Show 2017, delegates will have the opportunity to see a sample of Wrights’ extensive catalogue first hand. With a number of special show deals on offer, you may even grab yourself a bargain!

If you get a chance, the Scottish Dental Show is also an ideal occasion to chat with the friendly and knowledgeable representatives about setting up an on-going account. With the ‘My Wright Place’ online account management system, you can easily place an order, monitor department spending and create a customised product list.

Regular customers also benefit from tailored loyalty discount structures, meaning you get even more for your money when you choose Wrights.

Can’t make it? Pick up the phone to find out more!

For more information contact Wrights on 0800 66 88 99 or visit the easy to navigate website www.wright-cottrell.co.uk

Make the most of your relationship with Henry Schein by becoming a member of our innovative loyalty programme, Henry Schein Rewards (hsdrewards.co.uk).

Henry Schein Rewards is free to join, and once enrolled, members can gain valuable points for every pound spent on almost all Henry Schein Dental and Software of Excellence products and services. In addition, as a member you can also benefit from exclusive special offers which attract double or triple points to boost your total. Members will be the first to hear about new products at special member previews and receive Early Bird discounts for member-only events.

Managing your Rewards account is simple. Just visit the Rewards website hsdrewards.co.uk, log in to check your balance and set points goals, then sit back and watch as your points total grows.

Since its launch 8 months ago Rewards has been incredibly well-received by Henry Schein customers who have quickly seen the value and signed up to start earning points.

Emma Emerson, who manages the Rewards programme, says, “The programme is a great success and our customers love the fact that they are being rewarded for buying across the product range from both Henry Schein Dental and Software of Excellence. The breadth of our products and services is just one way in which we are practically demonstrating our commitment to providing everything needed to run a successful and profitable dental practice.”

“Working with Henry Schein Dental, I always knew I would be well looked after, however the Henry Schein Rewards programme seems to be the icing on the cake and a great way to reward committed and loyal customers!” Paul Worskett, Ambelcote Dental

Get your Rewards total rolling by applying today for free at hsdrewards.co.uk. All new successful applicants will automatically receive 1,000 bonus points.

Tel: 0800 083 8559

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Twitter: @HenryScheinUK

Facebook: HenryScheinUK

When placing a composite Class II restoration, one of the key challenges is to achieve excellent adaptation. Dentsply Sirona is addressing this issue with three innovative products designed to work together to provide superior adaptation at every stage of the restorative process:

• Palodent® V3 is a Sectional Matrix System that adapts to the natural contour of the tooth, providing predictable and accurate contacts and a tight marginal seal with minimal flash and fast finishing.
• SDR® Smart Dentine Replacement is a bulk fill composite that fully adapts to the cavity floor and matrix band. Its flowability and self-levelling properties reduce the occurrence of voids and bubbles, lessening the possibility of post-operative sensitivity.
• ceram.x® universal is a nano-ceramic composite used to finish the restoration. It fully adapts to the cavity and the SDR layer beneath it, while simplifying shade matching and finishing, creating long-lasting restorations with excellent aesthetics.

Each of these products alone offers the best in convenience, handling and performance. Used together, they complement each another and provide a complete Class II solution with superior adaptability.

To find out more about Restorative solutions contact Dentsply Sirona on 0800 072 3313 or visit dentsply.com/en-uk

Earn DENTSPLY Rewards £s on all your Restorative solution purchases at dentsplyrewards.co.uk and access free CPD webinars and product demonstrations at dentsplyacademy.co.uk

Facebook: DentsplySirona

Twitter: @DentsplySirona

How mentoring in implant dentistry can improve clinical outcomes and create a more rewarding professional life

Taking the first steps into implant dentistry can seem a daunting prospect for those lacking practical experience, and to successfully introduce and benefit from implant treatment in practice is something that’s not easily achieved alone. Academic training and having the most up-to-date knowledge of the processes involved is of course essential, but having limited experience and lacking confidence in hands-on practical skills can make things far harder in moving forward with treatment planning and placement.

Where to begin

For those who want to take their career to the next level and develop their skills in implant dentistry, yet are unsure how this can be achieved, should consider the benefits from ongoing guidance and support in the form of clinical mentoring. Mentoring can be successfully used to accelerate the development of skills, improve clinical outcomes and help in making complex clinical judgements to assist in building confidence and gaining essential hands-on experience in planning and placing implants.

Mentoring is a long-term relationship and a good Mentor is someone who genuinely cares for the mentee’s development and knows how to combine the desire for learning with practice clinical skills. They have the experience, teaching and support skills to offer high-level guidance for long-term development, to find a clinician’s strengths as well as weaknesses, and know precisely when to step in to help achieve successful treatment outcomes.

The role of a Mentor is not to tell or lecture mentees about what to do, but instead to come into their working environment to offer advice to help them think through challenges and find their own way through the myriad of clinical choices and treatment solutions available. Mentors are not there to undermine a clinician’s skills and competencies, but to guide and reassure them through their first cases and beyond based on individual skill levels and training requirements.

Support where it’s needed

Just as starting out in implant dentistry without expert guidance can be a challenge, finding a suitable Mentor without help can also prove to be problematic. Straumann, a market leader in implant dentistry are ideally positioned to partner clinicians with highly-experienced Mentors throughout the UK and Ireland through their Clinical Mentoring Programme, to deliver high quality and consistent clinical and educational skills in implant dentistry.

The benefits of a reputable training pathway and working closely with a Mentor to achieve consistent clinical outcomes and gain valuable hands-on experience in implant procedures should not be underestimated. This level of guidance is the safest and most effective way to start successfully and confidently placing and restoring implants within your practice.

“In my first year all my cases were first and second premolar implant placements, but through the guidance of a mentor I have been able to develop my skills and undertake the placement and restoration of implants in all sites, as well as sinus and bone grafts. When I compare my level of clinical care now to when I first started out in implants I can see a huge difference in not only my clinical capabilities, but my restorative skills too.”

Milisha Chotai, DDS, MSc, PGDip, PGCert

For more information on how to get started with dental implants visit straumann.co.uk or call Straumann on 01293 651270. To join the Straumann Clinical Mentoring Programme visit straumannmentoring.co.uk

Compared to TV or print ads, online ads are still relatively low-cost for companies who are looking to reach their desired market.

Additionally, online advertising tools give you the ability to lower your budget or even stop your campaign within a few seconds. Print or TV operates on contract basis, and when you are in a contract, things are not always as flexible.

Because you are spending less with online ads and have the flexibility to reduce costs or spend more instantly, advertising online gives you a loads of options for your marketing campaign.

With the added flexibility that online ads provide, the amount of options you suddenly have are a huge advantage. The ability to publish a number of ads at once, or change the ad as often as you want is a huge advantage. This flexibility is all part of the package and therefore the costs don’t rise. If you advertise on a billboard or in print, you can’t adapt your message instantly and you certainly can’t change the message as you go along.

According to this article on whether online advertising is expensive, which I have to say does go off some generalisations and is US centric they sum up their article with the following statement:- “Offline, traditional marketing costs an average of $22.00 per impression as opposed to $3.45 per impression with online marketing.”

Online advertising reflects modern society in being instant, flexible and results driven! If you are looking for value in your marketing, you have to be looking online.

On November 4th 2016, GDPUK hosted a conference for our members in Manchester. The day was a fantastic success both educationally as well as socially and the feedback we received was incredibly positive. 
 

We were extremely proud to host event that was different in style than your “normal” dental event and we believe that was also something that made a difference to the atmosphere on the day. Thanks again to everyone who attended, our excellent speakers for making the day so enjoyable and our sponsors who supported the day and continue to support GDPUK. 
 

We have now made two charitable donations following the event:-

• £600 went to a Manchester based charity, close to the Jacobs family, named Prevent, a cancer research organisation, it used to be named Genesis. www.preventbreastcancer.org.uk
• £400 went to British Dental Association Benevolent Fund, a charity which many of you will know, which supports dental people in times of hardship. www.bdabenevolentfund.org.uk

For 2017, we will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of GDPUK, and we are planning a bigger, even more exciting event in Manchester on Friday November 17th – Please put this date in your diary! More details to follow in next few weeks.

GDPUK.com is a social media site for dentists run by a dentist, Tony Jacobs. Established since 1997, there are over 10,000 dental professionals who have joined the community, they use the site to read dental news and blogs, as well as reading and contributing to the GDPUK forum where there have been over 250,000 posts since 2008! GDPUK is a fantastic resource for dentists and a great place to learn about as well as share your own opinion on important matters within UK dentistry.

"Flexibility - the ability to be easily modified."

Online advertising campaigns can be adjusted with a few clicks or changes to a banner.
You have the flexibility to respond to incoming data and make changes instantly. Similarly, you always have the ability to pause a campaign or adjust your marketing plan within minutes. This flexibility allows you to stay in front of your customers– anticipate customer needs and adjust your ads before anyone even notices.
 

At GDPUK we offer extra flexibility because our software gives the customer a number of options when they book a space on our site. Via our DFP software, our customers can actually run more than one advert at once in a given month. This means one of our customers can actually advertise two things or more from the same booking. One of our clients is currently using this method to advertise a number of offers at once. Added value and flexibility from GDPUK!
 

Having the option to change or adapt a campaign as you go along is another advantage to online advertising. Once you send an ad to a magazine it can’t be changed but with advertising online you can always experiment and adapt as the campaign develops. Online advertising definitely provides flexibility.

Part 5. Brand Awareness can be read here.

Our society has become more litigious over the years; patients are quick to complain to see if they can get a ‘quick buck’ and dentists fear such complaints being escalated to the GDC.

Litigation can be a costly game. For example, it has come to light that the legal costs for the recent 9 day fitness to practice hearing against D’Mello was an average of £10,437 per day. Given the allegations were undefended by Mr D’Mello, who chose not to attend the hearing, this has left many dentists questioning the use of their registration fees and asking why the costs were so high. [ see GDPUK news report].

If a dentist is faced with either a patient complaint or an investigation by the GDC, the traditional course of action has always been to approach their defence union; you pay subscriptions and therefore expect to be represented. However, is the defence union the best and only option to fund a case? What are the advantages/disadvantages with the various funding options?

When deciding whether or not to pursue or defend a claim, determining how you will fund the case will be one of the biggest factors to take into account. Knowing what options are available will make you better informed and can help you with this difficult decision. Here we consider those options and the pros and cons of each. 

Pay Privately. You may choose to pay privately for the legal costs. However, this is often the most expensive way to fund a claim, as it is likely you will be paying the solicitor on an hourly rate basis for all work done to prepare the case, unless you are able to negotiate a fixed fee agreement. The benefit of this is that you can pick an expert in the field and someone you can trust to do the best for your case. The old adage that you get what you pay for is particularly true here. The down side is that due to the very nature of litigation it can be hard to say from the outset the likely fees, as this can change depending on how the case progresses. A solicitor should however be able to give you a ball park figure and may agree to cap costs for you based on this or in respect of various stages to help you manage funds.

If the claim is in the civil courts, you may be able to recover some of your legal costs if you succeed. However, if you lose you could be liable for the other side’s legal costs. Unfortunately, in relation to fitness to practice hearings, you cannot recover your legal costs. Similarly, in the Employment Tribunal you can only recover costs in very limited circumstances and as such it is rare that costs are recovered.

‘No win, no fee’. These agreements are more normally found when one is pursuing a claim rather than defending it. The benefit to you is that there are no solicitor’s costs unless you win; this usually means a solicitor will be confident in the prospects of success of the claim, as otherwise they could do a considerable amount of work for no money. The down side is that as a result of you not paying up front, the solicitor will take a success fee from your compensation if you win.  Also check the terms of any agreement before signing, as there may be hidden costs if you lose or in other situations, which may mean you do have to pay some costs even if you do not recover any monies.

Legal Expenses Insurance Policy. Such policies are normally attached to other insurance policies such as employer’s liability or home contents insurance. The downside to legal expenses insurance is that you often have to meet certain criteria before funding is agreed. They also normally only apply once a dispute has arisen, and do not provide legal assistance to help you resolve a matter before getting to this stage.  The benefit is if funding is approved for your claim your legal costs and disbursements are covered, and often that of the other party’s should the case not succeed. There are different types of legal expenses insurance and it is often worth shopping around to find one that suits you; for example some will cover your legal costs no matter what and some will cover any compensation payable if you lose. Obviously such policies are likely to attract a higher premium. Remember, if you have legal expenses insurance, you have the freedom to choose your own solicitor and do not have to use the panel solicitors instructed by your insurance company.

Defence Union. If you are part of a defence union you will have access to a number of services including legal representation. However, the defence union are not obliged to follow your instructions, and can decide, due to commercial reasons, to settle a claim that you do not what to settle. This can leave you with a sense of injustice and frustration. Another consideration when choosing a defence union over standard indemnity insurance is that you will have no freedom of choice when it comes to choosing the solicitor or barrister that you want. Non-discretionary insurance policies are legally obliged to give freedom of choice in this regard.

After the Event Insurance. As the name suggests this is insurance you purchase after the dispute has arisen. It will normally cover your disbursements and the other side’s disbursements and legal costs should your claim fail. The policy therefore does not provide cover for your legal costs, which you will still need to fund. However, if your claim is in the civil costs and you succeed then you will recover some of your legal costs and disbursements from the losing party.

Do it yourself. There is always the option of representing yourself in proceedings. The benefit is you have complete control over your case and you do not have any legal costs. Beware; if the claim is in the civil courts and you lose you could have to pay the winning party’s legal costs. If you do represent yourself, remember to take a step back from the case; it is all too easy to get caught up in proving every wrong or to throw every allegation into the mix, which can often detract from the strengths in the case. You can consider instructing a solicitor to give you an initial advice so you know what direction to head in. You can also seek advice from a solicitor on an ad hoc basis to help you at various stages which can help keep the cost of litigation down.

How you fund a claim will depend on the type of claim being pursued. A solicitor has a duty to provide you with advice on your funding options, not just their fees, so you can ask them to explain the options available to you. Also make sure you understand any potential costs consequences of losing a claim, as you may want to seek insurance to cover such costs.

Laura Pearce, Senior Solicitor

Ivoclar Digital is the name of a strong and focused new brand developed by Ivoclar Vivadent. It provides dentists and dental technicians with state-of-the-art professional expertise throughout the entire digital process chain. The concept behind the brand will be presented at IDS 2017.

Since the successful introduction of IPS e.max more than ten years ago, Ivoclar Vivadent has significantly developed the company’s expertise in producing materials for the digital manufacture of esthetic dental restorations. Over 100 million restorations have been produced with this material to date, making it the most widely used CAD/CAM materials system in the world. The clinical reliability of the system has been proven many times over. The know-how gained by the company over many years will be integrated into digital dentistry workflows and marketed under the brand name of Ivoclar Digital. Particular emphasis will be placed on ensuring easy and comprehensible processes: selecting materials and designing and producing restorations. The product range will be rounded off by a wide selection of services that will be accessible to dentists and dental technicians. 

Ivoclar Digital will be presented to the public for the first time at IDS 2017. The international dental show will take place in Cologne, Germany, from 21 to 25 March 2017. More information about this cutting-edge brand for dental laboratories and practices can be obtained in Hall 11.3. at stand A20 – D39. Preliminary information is available at www.ivoclardigital.com.

IPS e.max^® is a registered trademark of Ivoclar Vivadent AG.

Caption:

(IvoclarDigital.jpg)

Fig.: Ivoclar Digital: Consolidated digital expertise

________________________________________________

For additional information, please contact:

Ivoclar Vivadent Ltd

Compass Building

Feldspar Close, Enderby

Leicester, LE19 4SD

Phone: +44 (0) 116 284 7880

Fax: +44 (0) 116 284 7881

E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

www.ivoclarvivadent.co.uk

A number of new features and opportunities on GDPUK in 2017. Get in touch if you have any questions. Contact details below.

Satisfied customers

We have had a number of satisfied advertisers recently, which pleases us immensely. Thanks to all our customers for their continued use of the site and all the new clients we have taken on recently. We wrote about an extremely satisfied client a few weeks ago, you can read it below, their offer was extremely well received and resulted in a number of sales, which is very pleasing to hear.

Blog on a satisfied GDPUK Client.
 

New refreshed website

As you will have noted, our website is refreshed and less crowded which we believe makes it look clearer and hopefully easier to navigate. If you have any feedback or would like to provide feedback - please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
 

20th Year Anniversary

2017 marks the 20th anniversary of GDPUK, something we have mentioned a number of times and will keep mentioning! We are close to putting together plans for a 20th anniversary Party and Conference in November and it is something that we would like as many of our members to attend as possible. Would be fantastic to celebrate with as many people as possible.
 

Super Leaderboard

Our leaderboard banner continues to be extremely popular with our advertisers. It is 728x90px and appears at the top of all our pages as you can see above. A recent option that we added to the site, is the super leaderboard which appears in the same space as the leaderboard but is super sized - 970x90, giving you even greater brand awareness and exposure on every page of GDPUK.
 

Number of banners at once

Via our DFP software, our customers can actually run more than one advert at once in a given month. This means one of our customers can actually advertise two things or more at once. One of our clients MC Dental / Repairs is currently doing using this method to advertise a number of offers at once. Added value from GDPUK!
 

News and Blogs

We continue to publish daily news and blogs, that get read by thousands of healthcare professionals on a weekly basis. Via our daily emails, tweets and facebook posts, we help to educate and inform our readers with the latest dental news and opinion. Something we are very proud of.

Banners are now appearing on the right hand side of the news and blogs. Considering the articles attract plenty of readers on a daily basis, it provides even more exposure for your brand.

As you can see GDPUK continues to evolve and improve, even in its 20th year! Thanks for reading.

In part 5 of the blog series, we are looking at brand awareness and its part in the online advertising journey.

Online advertising can be used to drive traffic to your site and build brand awareness. Effectively targeted campaigns can create brand influencers and reach complementary audiences.

The online space that gets booked, helps to establish your online presence, and get your potential customers / consumers excited and interested about who you are and what you have to offer. As mentioned in previous blogs, online advertising enables brands to focus on their ideal audience and tailor messages that improve both recall and engagement with the brand.

To be easily recognisable has to be the aim for every brand within their sector, which then builds your brand awareness. Creating brand awareness is one of the key steps in promoting a product. Brand awareness is particularly important when launching new products and services; and for a company to differentiate similar products and services from its competitors.

So using online advertising can be part of building brand awareness and making your target audience more aware of your brand. The more aware your audience are of your brand, the easier it is to convert the awareness into sales.

What options do we have available to create and improve brand awareness?

• Traditional advertising
• Online Advertising
• Sponsoring an event.
• Publicity stunt
• Word of mouth
• Reviews / testimonials
• Content / Blogs

So as you can see when building a brand, we have a number of options to play with but  what is the role of online advertising?

Online advertising plays a critical role in brand management and awareness whether at the corporate, retail or product level. With the help of advertising you can increase your brand's value and then it helps you to gain the new customers that we all look for :)

The end goal of any online advertising is to eventually convert all leads that you gather to actual sales. Whether it be an awareness or educational campaign, all businesses engage in advertising to ultimately generate sales! By creating a strong presence online, with whatever medium you choose, your investment in advertising and marketing will produce results and ultimately bring the extra revenue we all strive for.

So online advertising becomes a major part of building a brand and brand awareness. Online needs to be taken as seriously as the other more traditional mediums in helping to build that ultimate goal we all share of making your brand synonymous with the product or service you offer.

Thanks for reading part 5.

Along with your chair side manner and expertise, Castellini can help to put anxious patients at ease.

The stylish Italian design of the Castellini Skema 8 dental unit is conducive to patient composure because it reduces the frightening sights and sounds of the treatment room.

The Skema 8 is a fully integrated treatment centre with instrument and tube modules to keep tools and leads out of the patient’s field of vision. This innovative system also offers fluid movement with silent hydraulic functions and Silent Power turbines to reduce operating noise.

Ideal for both patient and practitioner comfort, the Skema 8 has a pneumatic headrest with a tri-axis pivot to angle the head with minimal fuss. It is also equipped with full multi-media technology to enhance patient communication.

The Skema 8 is available in a choice of fourteen shades to compliment the calming environment of your treatment room. Providing the ultimate in style, efficiency and ergonomics, the Skema 8 makes it possible to keep patients calm and relaxed, while you work in comfort.

To find out how you can turn anxious patients into contented ones, contact Castellini today.

If you require any further information please call 08000 933975
and speak to Castellini UK directly for assistance.

It may come as a shock to you to understand that the healthcare sector is the primary target sector for Cyber attacks. With sensitive information on patient's medical history and general health, Cyber criminals know that if they obtain this type of data then it will be highly profitable for them. 

Attacks of this nature in the healthcare industry are becoming more regular, and more severe, than any other market sector.

We all hear about Cyber attacks of the largest scale when the make the headline news, however, even small, family run businesses are at risk. These proficient hackers are not selective about who they target as such; if there is an opportunity on any scale, they are likely going to take it.

If you have protection technology and software then it's a starting point, although don't think that this will be enough to protect your practice data and systems. 

It is now essential that you also protect your practice and business, financially, if something on this nature does occur. 

What are the true consequences of a Cyber attack?

If criminals obtain your patient data, there are a couple of things they may do with the data. 

Firstly, they can sell the data on the black market, which means your patients suffer a breach of confidentially, 

Or, secondly, they may request a ransom for keeping the data confidential, which means your business needs to honour their demands at great expense. 

Cyber attacks often result in the following for practice owners:

1. Redundant hardware and software, which needs to be replaced

2. Hefty litigation and legal costs in dealing with the matter in hand

3. Compensation requests from your patients, for the breach

4. Loss of revenue, whilst you get back up and running

5. Often it is combination of all the above

This is the cost element, but also there could be a direct impact on the reputation of your practice. 

After all, bad news spreads fast and it could certainly deter existing patients and new patients from choosing you over one of your competitors. 

Does your Practice Insurance sufficiently cover you? 

So you may be thinking that your Practice Liability Insurance covers you against such crimes. Here, it is essential to read the Terms & Conditions in detail, as most policies only offer an introductory level of cover. 

Specific Cyber Liability Insurance covers your practice, comprehensively, in the event that this nightmare materialises. 

Cyber Insurance policies vary, however many include:

·         Compensation payments to your patients

·         Your patient’s legal fees

·         Statutory fines

·         Hardware replacement costs

·         Data Corruption & Reinstatement Costs

·         Liability Cover for Affected Third Parties – e.g. patients

·         Cyber Financial crime

·         Data – Breach Expenses

·         Loss of Gross Revenue

As we are now part of a very digital working environment, it is your responsibility as a business owner to protect the data you hold in the form of patient records. 

In 2017, it is essential to not turn a blind eye, or be ignorant to what could happen, hoping that it won't happen to you.

For further information please get in touch with All Med Pro - 0203 757 6950 - www.allmedpro.co.uk

New for 2017, Henry Schein Dental is delighted to announce the launch in the UK of Henry Schein Orthodontics, providing everything you need to run a successful orthodontic practice.

The new service offers an extensive range of orthodontic products from renowned  manufacturers, including bracket systems, buccal tubes, molar bands, archwires and intraoral appliances. In addition, exclusive lines such as the innovative Carrière SLX self-ligating bracket and Carrière Motion Appliance, which limits extractions and turns complex Class II and Class III cases into simpler Class 1 cases, will also be available.

Henry Schein Orthodontics will stage a series of educational courses featuring luminaries of the orthodontic world including Dr Luis Carrière, who will deliver a Carrière Philosophy course on Innovative Concepts in the Correction of Class II and Class III Malocclusions. Courses are running throughout 2017 at Henry Schein Dental’s training facilities and details are available at hsdeducation.co.uk.

To find out more about Henry Schein Orthodontics, request a product catalogue or arrange a visit from one of Henry Schein Dental’s orthodontic product specialists visit hsdorthodontics.co.uk or speak to one of our orthodontic team on 01634 266060.

All purchases of orthodontic equipment and materials will qualify for Rewards loyalty points. New members can sign up for Rewards today for free at hsdrewards.co.uk and automatically receive an additional 1,000 FREE bonus points.

henryschein.co.uk

Twitter: @HenryScheinUK

Facebook: HenryScheinUK

If your best friend won’t tell you what do you do? A different problem.

“I’m feeling a little bit under the weather”. Another vague absence. Karen was good team member, a hard worker and, with the exception of a couple of days a month, punctual and reliable. The principal and the practice manager didn’t know what to do; they had tried the usual approaches mixing concern and compassion but had got nowhere.

A recent survey of 10,000 office workers has found that most one-off sickies are due to hangovers with “just hating the job” coming in second. Neither was the case with Karen, she never drank and clearly enjoyed her career.

“Alun, I wonder could you do her appraisal when you’re next visiting the practice? We’re struggling with what to do about her absences.” Sometimes a different face, voice or ear will bring results. This time was a success and I was able to get to the heart of Karen’s problem. I found her to be a sensitive soul, caring and concerned but in the horns of a dilemma.

The practice consisted of six surgeries with one principal, four full and part-time associates and part-time three hygienists. They operated an egalitarian system where, in order to ensure their were no opportunities for favourites or cliques, the nurses moved around on what appeared to be a fairly complicated rota. This way they worked with associates, principal, hygienists, did their turn in the LDU and had a share of being a “float”.

It turned out that Karen’s absences always coincided with her being due to work with Pam, one of the associates. Pam was experienced, had worked in a variety of practices, hospital departments and had also had a spell working in the community. It was acknowledged she could be a bit brusque with both patients and nurses, but her work was good, she ran to time and grossed well. She was recently divorced, had no children and lived alone.

I managed to get to the heart of things when I met Karen. She was under the impression that the visiting Business Coach was there to see her for some sort of disciplinary matter but I soon disabused her of this and she relaxed. We proceeded with her appraisal, which went well, and having gained her confidence I introduced the matter of her absences. She eventually shared with me the fact that Pam suffered from what used to be labelled as “B.O.” - in other words she was smelly. All the nurses were aware of it but for some reason Karen was particularly sensitive and had needed to run to the toilet to be sick the last time that she worked with Pam. She had now got herself into a real state in case the same thing happened again. She had started to believe that she was the one with the problem and hence the absences.

When I asked the principal and the practice manager they both admitted to having noticed Pam’s odour but had presumed that it was a rare event. Bromhidrosis or body odour, is a common phenomenon in post-pubertal individuals and can rarely become pathologic if it interferes with the life of the individual concerned.

So far, so good we had a diagnosis, but how to treat the problem?

As I was there, and Pam was there that day, it was felt that there would be less of an embarrassment if I were to broach the subject with her. Fine I thought, the client is always right and I have to earn my corn. It wasn’t something that I had done before and I am all for new experiences, if it went badly then I would get the blame and could walk away for another three months.

We met after work and I gave myself 15 minutes to achieve the objectives which were, to point out to Pam as subtly but effectively that there had been comments, to find out if she realised that there might be a problem and then work out a way to deal with it.

Her reaction, thankfully, was not one of denial or to attempt to blame someone for “sneaking” on her. She was horrified and visibly upset. It turned out that she had rather “let herself go” (her words) following her divorce and some days it was all she could do to drag herself out of bed and often didn’t get round to showering or bathing. She wore a tunic at work but wore it over clothes and we agreed that a change to scrubs might help. Most, but not all, of the clinicians wore them and as they were laundered by the practice it removed any home washing. An easier conversation than I feared with, hopefully, a positive result.

When I checked in with the practice owner during our regular coaching calls Pam had obviously had a bit of an awakening. The odour problem had gone and she had taken ownership of the problem by taking the time to ask each nurse at the start of her next session with them to please tell her if there was any recurrence.

How MClinDent  helped Dr Wahab Shakir

Many delegates value Tipton Training’s close ties with the City of London Dental School’s Masters degree programme known as ‘MClinDent’.

This ‘fast-tack- degree partnership means that successful completion of Tipton Training’s dentistry courses can lead to a PG Diploma from the British Academy of Restorative Dentistry(BARD) or British Academy of Dental Implantology(BADI). Delegates with the PG Diploma can register with The City of London Dental School, to facilitate their APL entry into the third year of either the MClinDent Restorative and Cosmetic degree, or the MClinDent Dental Implantology degree.

Student to master

One dentist that has followed this route is Dr Wahab Shakir - who is now one of Tipton Training’s faculty members. After studying at Newcastle University and experiencing life at a private practice in London, Wahab furthered his career by taking on The Restorative Course and The Phantom Head Course at Tipton Training in 2013 and 2014 respectively. What’s more, Wahab was presented with the Best Dentist Award for The Phantom Head Course.

“I completed The Restorative and Phantom Head Courses with Tipton Training. Both courses have changed the way I do dentistry, I would definitely recommend the courses to clinicians at wanting to upgrade their skills. It will take your abilities, understanding and treatment planning to advanced levels,” explains Wahab.

“The courses are strongly rooted in evidence and they provide both the practical and theoretical knowledge necessary to treat patients to the best standards. I especially liked the way Paul and the team teach occlusion, TMJ diagnosis, articulators and occlusal splint therapy.

“The courses also had a big positive impact on my monthly salary before I even finished. They gave me the confidence to diagnose and carry out work I would have referred off and not attempted before. Which is great as the I started to work solely in a private practice.”

'Not only do I think it's the best training pathway out there, and there appears to be more and more courses setting up daily as we speak run by dentists who have a spare room and turn it into a 'lecture theatre' or 'conference centre' (and Tipton Training has trained most of them) but it's the only one I know of that has this unique pathway between the course, BARD/BADI and MClinDent to make it such an easy transition in your own time to a Masters. So there's the second reason if you needed one to do these courses."

“Further training is obligatory nowadays, especially when moving into private practice. If you are need a boost in the world of dentistry, if you want to expand your knowledge and take your operative skills to top class levels then the Tipton Training Courses are a must,” adds Wahab.

Wahab was one of the first dentists to take advantage of the partnership between Tipton Training and the MClinDent in Restorative and Cosmetic Dentistry at the City of London University. He found the conversion process was easy and that the teaching from Paul and the team have helped him prepare for the complex curriculum of the MClinDent.

An excellent industry reputation

Wahab is now passing his expertise to Tipton Training’s latest pool of ambitious delegates and enjoys a reputation that is typical of our lecturers. In particular, Wahab is respected for his knowledge of up to date cosmetic and general dental techniques, in addition to occlusion.

He believes the in-depth knowledge of the available evidence, thorough treatment planning habits and exacting clinical protocols that the Tipton Training courses instil in the delegates are invaluable. This in turn helps delegates produce dentistry with a good prognosis and pleasing aesthetic results.

Delegates particularly benefit from Wahab’s ability to advise them of the best ways to produce outstanding restorations and high-quality preparations for (amongst other things) anterior and posterior composites, crowns, inlays, onlays, veneers, post and cores and bridges.

Studying dentists can also gain insights into how Wahab uses the principles of occlusion to restore his patient’s worn dentition with the utmost respect for their TMJ, parafunctional habits and any associated pain or tension.

ABOUT TIPTON TRAINING

Tipton Training aim to provide the best courses for dental professionals in the UK by drawing on the experience of their talented dental team. They aim to increase levels of confidence and self-belief in their delegates and to teach them excellence in dental techniques so that they can achieve their career ambitions. Tipton Training provides access to specialist guest speakers to ensure that delegates receive the most advanced knowledge available.

Your ability to target goes beyond reaching just your target audience. Online also offers advertisers a limitless creative canvas.

For some reason, there is a common misconception that online ads are of poor quality, when in fact digital advertising provides the opportunity to be highly engaging with video and other rich media. Using flash and in-banner video ads can increase brand recognition and highlight your competitive edge. In the instance, when one of your ads is under-performing  A/B test your copy, your image, your headline and serve ads that are as dynamic as the online space in which they are living. A well-designed banner ad can turn your digital campaign from good to great.

At the beginning banners were extremely basic but now the digital landscape is incredibly clever and innovative. Below is a link to some amazing online campaigns from the last year or so. Some of the designs and creativity on show is breathtaking and shows how clever a banner ad can be made, which certainly helps to catch the attention of your target audience.

This Audi banner ad is fun and engaging - https://digitalsynopsis.com/audi-curves/

Or a GSK one which will remind you of your party days! - https://digitalsynopsis.com/glaxosmithkline-party/

The full list can be found here.

Plenty of information from Google about creating compelling content here.

Thanks for reading. I hope this has got you thinking of the possibilities for your next marketing campaign.....

Part 3 of the series on Targeting can be found here.

In the field of dentistry, dentists may sometimes experience stress at work – after all, it can be a very fast moving, performance-driven environment.

As such, dentists (just like everyone else) are at risk of developing a substance abuse problem such as an alcohol or smoking addiction. According to a recent well-being report published by the British Dental Association, almost half of general dental practitioners (GDPs) surveyed reported low levels of life satisfaction and 44 per cent reported low levels of happiness.[i] On top of that, 55 per cent admitted to experiencing high levels of anxiety the day prior to being surveyed, which suggests that the number could be even higher if you take into account those dentists who suffer from sporadic episodes of anxiety and nervousness.

As it stands, the exact number of dentists suffering from an addiction problem and/or mental illness is unknown. What we do know, however, is that high levels of stress at work can have a negative effect on emotional well-being and mental health,[ii] which is why the profession must continue to place importance on staff welfare. After all, with the right help and support, such a risk could be completely avoided.

Luckily, there is help available for those dentists that need a hand with getting over an addiction. The Dentists’ Health Support Programme, which is managed by the Dentists’ Health Support Trust (DHST) offers dentists in difficulty an opportunity to remedy their problems, get their life back on track and, where possible, back into practice. Part of the struggle can be to admit to having a problem, but with the help of an organisation like DHST, which has an 80 per cent success rate (the highest of any comparable charity in the country), dentists can receive the necessary diagnosis and intervention that they need to get better.

All support, treatment, rehabilitation and assistance with recovery and reintegration is delivered by an expert team comprising of a psychiatric nurse and a recovering alcoholic with many years of sobriety under his belt. Without such a service, dentists would have no-one to turn to – and it is for that reason that the profession must continue to offer its support to charities like DHST. Similar to other organisations within the dental sphere, the work of the Dentists’ Health Support Programme relies entirely on the generosity of the profession for its funding.

One of the establishments that has taken an active role in providing monetary support is the Association of Dental Groups (ADG). “At the ADG, we are very much aware of the importance of providing support to dentists in need,” says David Worskett, the Chairman of the ADG. “That is why we will continue to assist the Trust and the delivery of the Programme as much as we can, and we encourage others, where possible, to do the same.

“While addiction isn’t a prevalent problem in the profession, it is important that a service is available, even if it serves just one person.”

The Dentists’ Health Support Trust is grateful for all of the support that it receives from the profession. If you would like to help, get in touch with the Trust today – any donation, no matter how big or small, would be hugely appreciated.

For more information about the ADG visit www.dentalgroups.co.uk

For more information about the Dentists’ Health Support Trust call 020 7224 4671 or visit www.dentistshealthsupporttrust.org