A recent court case leading to a ‘Director of dental services‘ being fined has shown dentistry‘s double regulation in action. Karim Guirguis, also known as Kareem Guirguis, director of DE Clinics UK Limited (trading as The Dental Experts), was ordered to pay £9,614 and issued a 12-month Community Order.
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A check up with patients that seem unable to sit still, and are reluctant to open or close their mouth is difficult enough. Add on staff complaining about the patients that have tracked in mud onto the floor and left reception looking like a farmyard, and things get worse.
Former CQC boss Ian Trenholm made a sudden exit in June, with the announcement made only days before his actual departure. There was a distinct lack of appreciation expressed for his time in office.
Many GDPs have a pretty dim view of the dental claims companies, in particular one that is well known for its impressive ratio of legal costs claimed, to actual damages received by patients.
Read more: Outside General Practice, Dental Negligence Claims Soar
An annual joint whistleblowing report is produced by the nine health and social care professional regulators, including the GDC. The latest report covering the period ending 31 March 2024 has now been published. The GDC use the GOV.UK definition: ‘You‘re a whistleblower if you‘re a worker and you report certain types of wrongdoing.
The 43 Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) appear to have adopted 43 different approaches to commissioning in the fragmented world of NHS dentistry. Appearances matter, and ICB‘s will be very conscious of the optics of how they are seen to manage dental access.
Whilst an estimated thirteen million adults are unable to access NHS dentistry*, dental plan provider Denplan, part of Simplyhealth, has published the results of a survey which reveal that 61% of patients who do access NHS services ‘would consider‘ going private.
Read more: 61% Of NHS Patients 'Would Consider' Private Alternatives
Healthwatch Trafford has issued a warning to patients about a website offering to make NHS dental appointments. The site uses similar colours to NHS branding and in return for upfront payment says it will find and make an appointment with an NHS or private dentist.
Read more: Healthwatch Exposes Scam NHS Appointments Website
GDPUK aims to celebrate the full range of dental general practice and the anything but mundane lives of many ‘typical‘ dentists. From Liverpool to London to New Zealand, with stops in Thailand, India, and a selection of disaster scenes, dentist Vivienne Levy, has had a particularly eventful journey through her dental career. Patients at her suburban practices may not have known that she has been involved in rather more than ‘routine‘ dentistry.