Dental cross-specialty plan is an important step

A joint dental conference, hosted by the Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK) and the Faculty of Dental Surgery has called for the inception of an independent, cross-professional standard setting board to help regulate dental practice in the UK.

Members from both dental faculties, which together support both primary and secondary dental care, and representatives from specialty associations, agreed that the profession could improve its accountability and better support professional development if both faculties worked together to set professional standards, essential for revalidation.

Russ Ladwa, dean at the Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK), says: ‘The FGDP(UK) has developed a wide range of initiatives to support professional development in primary dental care practice. This work, in addition to a comprehensive body of published standards, will be valuable in supporting this positive initiative.’

Derrick Willmot, dean of the Faculty of Dental Surgery, adds: ‘The FDS has been setting and improving standards for the dental profession for over 60 years with the aim of improving patient care; the proposal to establish a cross-specialty standards board is an important step, and one the FDS welcomes.’

Speaking at the conference, Lord Howe, parliamentary under-secretary of state for health with responsibility for dentistry says: ‘Involvement of the profession in setting standards for dentistry is essential to ensure patients can be assured of high quality care.

‘The coalition government remains committed to the introduction of revalidation in dentistry and welcomes the close co-operation between the dental faculties, the British Dental Association and the General Dental Council to ensure the development of a robust but not burdensome system.’

The conference took place at The Royal College of Surgeons of England on Tuesday 18 January.

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