Dental practice happy to run without profit

A dental practice has become a non-profit enterprise in an effort to help its local community.
 
Severn Dental Centre – in Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset – focuses on high need patients and the practice has been set up as a community interest company (CIC) to meet their needs.
 
The dental centre is the first CIC dental practice in the UK and has now received a Social Enterprise Mark.
 
Owners, Gus and Wendy van Reissen, say they had been working on the idea for two years; they were passionate about promoting oral health, as well as instilling community spirit and doing their bit to help local people.
 
The couple say they decided to adapt the surgery as part of the new government’s Big Society ideal.
 
On the social enterprise website, it says of the practice: ‘Severn Dental Centre is a small independent dental practice, located in Weston-Super-Mare, and is dedicated to promoting healthy mouths.
 
‘We are working in a mid-terrace house, close to the railway station and the seafront. We aim to create a modern dental surgery with an innovative way of delivering dentistry, aimed at high-needs patients and especially gum treatments, where we continuously invest in new skills and new technology, including most recently the installation of a new instrument sterilisation facility. That way we ensure that our patients have the very best that modern dentistry can offer.

Our main emphasis is to encourage long-term dental health for people who have a high need for dental treatment. We are happy to discuss your individual needs at any time.

We operate most of our services under NHS contract, but some treatments can be carries out privately. All patients are eligible to join our practice.’
 
The Social Enterprise Mark Company is the only certification authority for social enterprises.
 
For more, visit www.socialenterprisemark.org.uk.

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