British Dental Association Calls On Department Of Health To Back-up Its Accusations That Dentists Are 'gaming' New General Dental Services Contract

Main Category: Dentistry
Article Date: 17 Oct 2008 - 6:00 PDT

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The British Dental Association (BDA) has written to the Department Of Health asking for data to substantiate accusations made in the media this week that dentists in England are "gaming" the new general dental services contract. The accusations, based on an allegation of healthy patients being recalled too frequently for check ups, have appeared in a number of daily newspapers.

Responding to the accusations BDA Executive Board Chair Susie Sanderson said:

"The British Dental Association does not have the necessary data to comment on these suggestions. If the Department of Health does, it should share that information so that it can be investigated and better understood. The Interval between recalls is, according to NICE guidelines published in 2004 and supported by the BDA, a matter for a practitioner's clinical judgement in consultation with the patient. For adult patients, that interval is required to be between three and 24 months.

"The significant problems with the new dental contract have been recognised this year by the House of Commons' Health Select Committee. Dentists across the country are working hard to deliver the best possible care for their patients despite those problems. What those dentists need is the support and constructive dialogue the profession has been calling for, not allegations of wrongdoing from the architects of the reforms."

The NICE guideline on recall intervals was published in 2004 and is available here.

The Health Select Committee's report on dental services was published in July 2008. The report, and the BDA's response to it, can be accessed at: www.bda.org.

The British Dental Association (BDA) is the professional association for dentists in the UK. It represents over 23,000 dentists working in general practice, in community and hospital settings, in academia and research, and in the armed forces, and includes students.

Source
John Hilsdon
Media & Public Affairs Manager
British Dental Association
www.bda.org