The following have been elected by postal ballot to seats on the BDA board
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Sarah Davies from Coventry had a non-healing mouth ulcer that was diagnosed as mouth cancer. The wife and mother-of-one had radiotherapy and chemotherapy was given the all clear five years ago. To improve awareness of the disease, Sarah is sharing her story as part of November’s Mouth Cancer Action Month.
At its first ever online AGM, the BDA elected Professor Elizabeth Kay to be the next President of the Association. She will be installed next year and serve for two years, instead of the usual 12 months. The AGM, chaired by Eddie Crouch, received a report on its activities and finances during the year ending September 2019.
Mouthwash can eradicate coronavirus within 30 seconds of being exposed to it in a laboratory, a scientific study has found. The preliminary result said that mouthwashes containing at least 0.07% cetypyridinium chloride (CPC) showed “promising signs” of being able to combat the virus.
Read more: New study: Mouthwash kills coronavirus within 30 seconds in laboratory tests
Junior health minister, Jo Churchill MP, has announced that NHS dental patient charges will rise by 5% from December 14, 2020. The charge payable for a band 1 or urgent course of treatment will rise by £1.10, from £22.70 to £23.80. For band 2 it will rise by £3.10 from £62.10 to £65.20. For band 3 course it will increase by £13.50 from £269.30 to £282.80.
Read more: NHS patients’ charges to rise by 5% despite pandemic
This year, the BDA Benevolent Fund has seen a three-fold increase in requests for help, a direct result of the challenges posed by COVID-19, and has been able to maintain the usual high level of assistance thanks to the dedication of the team and robust protocols. General Manager, Laura Hannon, commented, ‘We are here to help”.
Read more: Three-fold increase in requests for help from Ben Fund
Dental Protection is calling on the GDC and the Professional Standards Authority to do more as fear of investigations arising from Covid-19 and disruption to care, is becoming a growing concern for dentists’ mental wellbeing. Raj Rattan, Dental Director said: “We are particularly concerned to see that fear of regulatory investigation due to Covid-19 disruption has increased since we surveyed our members back in May”.
Read more: Dentists fearful of investigations arising from Covid-19 says Dental Protection
Restricted access to dental care due to COVID-19 resulted in greatly increased dental antibiotic prescribing, against an otherwise downward trend. In April to July 2020 was 25% higher than April to July 2019, with a peak in June 2020. The increase was highest in London (60%) and lowest in the South West (10%).
Read more: Antibiotic prescribing for dental conditions rose during Covid lockdown
Health Minister, Jo Churchill MP, was challenged in the House of Commons by Rosie Cooper Labour MP for West Lancashire to say what help the Government could give dental surgeries to improve their capacity. The Minister replied that the Department was ‘actively working on at pace’ and she would be meeting the BDA Chair, Eddie Crouch, to discuss what could be done.
Read more: Minister promises to meet Eddie Crouch to discuss effect of fallow time on practices