'GDPs' Blog Posts

• Wales: Political tide must turn to save GDS contract reform

  ​We examine your views following our survey on the GDS contract reform volumetrics, or the UDA-only option, and the choices you are facing for 2023-24. A rapid report reveals a bleak picture ahead.

  Blog Date 27 February, 2023

• Fairer uplifts for dentists needed to solve the recruitment crisis in Wales

  Tom Bysouth has made the case for fairer uplifts for dentists' pay in Wales and called for immediate action on the recruitment and retention crisis.

  Blog Date 5 March, 2020

• The face mask shortage: What you need to know

  Dentists have faced a global shortage of face masks, presenting an imminent risk of disruption to all UK dental practices, now we're close to a breakthrough here's what you need to know.

  Blog Date 26 February, 2020

• Assurance Reviews: Securing a fair deal for NHS practices

  We have achieved a breakthrough on Dental Assurance Reviews with the BSA committing to targeting genuine outliers

  Blog Date 19 February, 2020

• Return of devolved government: An opportunity to progress dentistry in Northern Ireland

  After three years without local government in Northern Ireland, we are pleased that power-sharing has now been restored, and hopeful that much-needed progress can now start to be made for Health Service dentistry.

  Blog Date 15 January, 2020

• Understanding why patients won't attend the dentist

  Rebecca Harris from Liverpool University has been doing some research into the reasons why patients don't attend and has produced a toolkit to help encourage dental visits - she's sharing the findings at a free event in February.

  Blog Date 15 January, 2020

• Dental contract reform: our asks for 2020

  During 2019, we have continued to push for a reformed NHS dental contract that works for both patients and the profession. This is what we are asking for...

  Blog Date 12 December, 2019

• Dental contract reform: let's move forward

  We are still pushing hard to get a reformed NHS dental contract implemented from April 2021, find out what we are calling for.

  Blog Date 12 December, 2019

• Is NHS dentistry becoming a 'thing of the past' for many Welsh communities?

  We were pleased to see Welsh Assembly Members last week voicing the concerns we have been highlighting over the need for support for dentists in Wales who are suffering from stress and burnout, due to the increasing demands being put on dentists in their working lives.

  Blog Date 4 December, 2019

• Election 2019: Dentistry on the doorstep

  Some top tips from our Public Affairs Adviser, Robert Cann, on making a strong case for NHS dentistry with your local candidates in this upcoming General Election.

  Blog Date 28 November, 2019

• The perfect storm: the 4 million being failed by NHS dentistry

  One in 10 people are losing out on dental care and they are probably the ones who need us most. Dental practices are struggling to fill vacancies, NHS charges discourage attendance, and the NHS dental contract caps our patient numbers. It's time that Government ensures NHS dentistry has a future, says Dave Cottam.

  Blog Date 20 November, 2019

• NHS website dental patient reviews: what you need to know

  Many dental practices raised issues with NHS Choices system of patient review, and the difficulties in moderating comments, especially those that were not related to the dental practice at all. Nick Stolls explains the work LDC members have been doing to work with NHS Digital to improve the system and make it less onerous for dentists.

  Blog Date 12 November, 2019

• The recruitment crisis in NHS dentistry needs to be addressed

  We were delighted to see Lord Colwyn addressing the House of Lords last week, raising the issue of the recruitment crisis that NHS dentistry is facing in response to proposed new legislation on public safety and regulation.

  Blog Date 7 November, 2019

• The truth behind the headlines: persistent oral health inequalities in Scotland

  Robert Donald argues that although new stats showing improvements in children's oral health in Scotland are welcome, the Scottish Government cannot rest on its laurels about the stark oral health inequalities across Scotland, and calls for more investment for dentistry.

  Blog Date 6 November, 2019

• Moving the agenda forward: prioritising oral health in Northern Ireland

  Improving the oral health of the Northern Ireland population is a key area of BDA Northern Ireland's work, and that's why we decided to bring together politicians and other key stakeholders at a recent summit in Stormont, to discuss what needs to happen to move the agenda forward.

  Blog Date 6 November, 2019

• Is the issue of stress in dentistry finally being taken seriously?

  BDA President Roz McMullan responds to the news the Department of Health in England has finally extended access to all NHS dentists to the Practitioner Health Support Programme. She also looks at what similar provision is available in the other three UK countries.

  Blog Date 5 November, 2019

• Stress in dentistry: How can we manage it?

  Hina Patel is a dentist, a nutritional therapist and a stress management coach. She shares some tips and tools for helping you to manage stress and highlights the resources and support available for dentists.

  Blog Date 22 October, 2019

• Do younger dentists see the value in getting politically engaged? The view from LDCs

  Leah Farrell looks at the survey responses from LDC representatives on whether they are succeeding in getting younger dentists interested in dental politics and representative roles. She feels the responses are encouraging, and says the LDC Agenda Committee will continue to work on supporting younger dentists to take part.

  Blog Date 9 October, 2019

• Time for commissioners to step up on care for vulnerable dental patients

  Dave Cottam and Charlotte Waite assess the news that the CQC has stated that oral health will finally feature in inspection criteria from 1 October. Will care homes be able to meet these criteria and is enough domiciliary care dentistry commissioned to help support the growing need?

  Blog Date 3 October, 2019

• Clunky IT sums up failure to invest in Scottish dentistry

  We leapt at the chance to make our case to Scottish Parliament’s Health and Sport Committee, as they held a much-needed inquiry into what the ‘next generation’ of primary care should look like.

  Blog Date 3 October, 2019

• NHS dentistry in the spotlight: AMs debate a failed contract

  We continued to highlight the failure of the NHS dental contract in Wales at a recent Welsh Assembly plenary session this week, as AMs highlighted the impact the lack of investment in dentistry is having on patients and the profession.

  Blog Date 3 October, 2019

• Safeguarding children: a new tool to help all dental teams

  Safeguarding our child and young patients can be challenging. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to tell if a child is at risk of harm and cases continue to be highlighted in the media that demonstrate failures in health social care safeguarding systems and procedures. So, a team of community dentists have developed a tool to help dental teams take a consistent approach to missed appointments.

  Blog Date 13 September, 2019

• Dentists under pressure: new free helpline and support for BDA members

  Roz McMullan explains why we've recently launched a new service for our members, partnering with the award-winning employee assistance programme from Health Assured

  Blog Date 6 September, 2019

• Dentistry under the spotlight: How can we improve the system for patients?

  We are calling on dentists to respond to a new inquiry into NHS dentistry - find out what you can do to add your voice to call for change.

  Blog Date 15 August, 2019

• Sports injuries and dental trauma: a project to save knocked out teeth

  Learn about this great project encouraging prevention of dental trauma from sports injuries by a group of DCTs in Scotland and find out how you can use their resources to raise awareness amongst your patients.

  Blog Date 1 August, 2019

• What's it like being an... associate dentist in the Scottish Highlands? Jane Patterson

  Jane Patterson is an associate dentist working in a mixed practice in Inverness. She has a passion for lifeboats and dogs…

  Blog Date 23 July, 2019

• HPV vaccinations for boys in Scotland - why a catch-up programme is needed

  Oral cancer is a serious and growing concern in Scotland – incidence rates are among the highest in Europe, we have seen a 37% increase in oral cancer deaths in the last decade, and it claims three times as many lives in Scotland as car accidents.

  Blog Date 17 July, 2019

• Is your working life as a dentist perfect?

  If so that’s great but if not why not take part in next year’s LDC Conference, and tell us what you’d like to see help make some positive changes.

  Blog Date 11 July, 2019

• Dentistry, the toothbrush and sustainability

  Anyone who watched the “Blue Planet” series with David Attenborough or more recently the “War on Plastic with Hugh and Anita” (Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Anita Rani) couldn’t help but be moved by the realisation that our reliance on plastics is causing havoc to the environment.

  Blog Date 11 July, 2019

• From Portsmouth to Aberystwyth: a failed contract in action

  Reading the news that three NHS practices in Portsmouth are to close, Tom Bysouth, Chair of the Welsh General Dental Practice Committee, considers that the case for ensuring better access in Wales, is ever more urgent.

  Blog Date 19 June, 2019