The NHS Dental Christmas Gift Box Arrives
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- Published: Monday, 11 December 2023 10:34
- Written by Peter Ingle
- Hits: 1640
Along with the boxes of chocolates and biscuits from appreciative patients, it’s that time of year when NHS England send out their tokens of appreciation to the teams delivering dental care across the nation.
Unlike the edible offerings from patients which tend to have a very short life, NHSE’s festive hamper is intended to last into the New Year and beyond.
Here, in particular for the delectation of those who have left the NHS, are some of the highlights from NHS Dental Services seasonal bulletin.
First up, a reminder that ‘NHS practices’ must update their website information by December 31st, as part of the obligation to do this every quarter. This is now a ‘must’ since DHSC passed new regulations in November 2022. The profile needs to include opening times, contact details, services, facilities and crucially, whether accepting new patients. This requirement remains one of the few strands of the much heralded NHS reform package still standing, or likely to be seen through.
The most eagerly anticipated ‘gift’ is for those hoping to maximise their use of skill mix in delivering services. Although it comes in the form of an IOU, the big news is that there are “Plans in place to issue personal numbers to Dental Care Professionals.” NHS England are now confirming that Dental Care Professionals (DCPs) will soon be able to submit their own FP17 claims when completing full courses of treatment.
At present, all DCPs in England completing whole NHS courses of treatment, or contributing to courses of treatment with dentists or other DCPs, submitting FP17 claims for either process, require a dentist’s performer number and the GDC number of the DCP.
To simplify matters, personal ID numbers will be issued to DCPs, initially including hygienists, therapists and clinical dental technicians. This will enable them to have their own Compass account and submit their own FP17 claims. Further details about the plans to assign personal numbers to DCPs and onboard DCPs to Compass, will be announced soon.
For joint courses of treatment with dentists the current process will continue to apply. If DCPs carry out joint courses of treatment alongside dental performers, FP17 claims must continue to be submitted with a dentists’ performer number and the GDC number of the DCP.
The equivalent of the slightly soggy satsumas at the bottom of the stocking, comes in the form of a section on how to enter NI numbers into Compass, and Dental Services opening hours over the festive period.
For contract holders it is likely that the item most likely to provide good cheer is the opportunity to join an NHS Pensions member event. These are intended to help members understand more about the scheme and their available options, and are specifically for dentist members. With DCP’s looking forward to receiving their ID numbers, they may now be asking when they can join the pension scheme.
As 2023 draws to a close, it seems only yesterday that the former CDO spoke of those dentists who have moved to private work, looking wistfully at their NHS colleagues and experiencing FOMO.
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