New members for the House of Commons Health Committee have been announced. They include six Conservatives (including the Chair Dr Sarah Wollaston), four Labour and one Scottish Nationalist. Of them 8 were elected first in May 2015. Their contact details appear below.
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The government intends to put strict limits on the ‘excessive fees’ some lawyers claim in medical negligence cases against the NHS in England. Officials are reported to want a defined limit on legal costs in cases where the claims are below £100,000, saying that some lawyers submit bills that charge more than patients receive in compensation. But solicitors have warned warn that this could deny patients access to justice.
Read more: Government to curb excessive fees of some lawyers
Opening the Westminster Health Forum event, BDA Chair Mick Armstrong said that dentists must be allowed to get on and do their jobs without the shadow of oppressive regulation and the current culture of fear. Speaking at the same seminar chief executive, Evlynne Gilvarry, defended the record of General Dental Council and called for legislative reform.
Kings Dental Institute London has announced that Francesca Laxton, who recently completed her BDS undergraduate programme, Class of 2015, has won the highly prestigious University of London Gold Medal Viva for Dentistry. The medal and a cheque for £500 is awarded annually to the student who most distinguishes him, or herself, in a special series of oral exams conducted by four external examiners.
It’s an exciting time for the dental profession, with research showing that nearly 70% of dentists are looking to expand their businesses within the next five years. This makes attending BDIA Dental Showcase the ideal opportunity to find out what’s new in dentistry. This event is to be held on 22-24 October at the NEC in Birmingham. You can register now for tickets for you and your team, by visiting: www.dentalshowcase.com
Read more: “You’ll find a great deal at BDIA Dental Showcase”
Gone are the days when someone walks into a bank with a balaclava and a gun shouting ‘stick 'em up!’ according to specialist dental accountant Heidi Marshall. Fraud is less hazardous for criminals, especially since they can hide behind a false identity in a phone call or email. Cyber criminals steal approximately £9.2 billion every year out of the UK economy and dentists are among their many targets.
The British Dental Association (BDA) has called on government to take heed of the latest expert advice to slash the recommended daily intake of sugar. The BDA is now launching an online petition to David Cameron, inviting both health professionals and patients to lend support to this advice. BDA Chairman, Mick Armstrong, said: “We have an historic opportunity here to end Britain's addiction to sugar.”
Figures published by the Dental Schools Council confirm the highest ever number of clinical academics employed by UK dental schools, to a total of 592 full-time equivalent (FTE) clinical academics, and a headcount of 990. Of these, there were 383 FTE Professors, Senior Lecturers and Lecturers and 291 FTE Senior Clinical Teachers, Clinical Teachers and Researchers.
Read more: Numbers of dental clinical teachers show continued increase
Regulation of private clinics carrying out dental and other healthcare services, including non-surgical cosmetic interventions, will begin in Scotland next year. Healthcare Improvement Scotland will start regulating private clinics from April, where services are provided by doctors, dentists, nurses, midwives and dental care professionals. Currently, there is no regulation for the non-surgical cosmetic industry in the UK.