The Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (SPSO) publicationGuidance on a Model Complaints Handling Procedure is accompanied by a Statement of Complaints Handling Principles

The DBS deals with criminal records checks (now known as DBS checks) and is responsible for maintaining the Barred Lists for both children and vulnerable adults. Inclusion on the barred list precludes an individual from participating in a regulated activity with the relevant group. For the purposes of this scheme dentistry is considered to be a regulated activity and all adult patients are considered to be vulnerable. Thus inclusion on either or both lists would effectively bring an end to a dentist or dental care professionals practice.

Dental professionals are required to make and keep accurate dental records of care provided to patients, whether NHS or private. Dental Protection is frequently contacted by members who want to understand how long records should be retained by the practice.

Stephen Henderson describes a campaign that has fundamentally changed the way in which the GDC’s Investigating Committee operates

The law on “informed” consent has changed following a recent Supreme Court judgment

The report of the Intercollegiate Advisory Committee for Sedation (IACS) in Dentistry was published in April 2015 and replaces the previous document, Conscious Sedation in the Provision of Dental Care (Department of Health 2003)

Resistance to shared decision making often revolves around a perception that dentists have many patients who wish the dentist to make the decision for them. Whatever you think best. The difficulty is that just as Dentists have preferences for their style of decision making, patients also have preferences as to their desired level of involvement.

Some important facts that we think you will find surprising

In general, there are three approaches to achieve a safe passage through any minefield. The first is to find out exactly where all the mines are located before you start, and then to carefully plan a safe route – and stick to it.

The key to complaints handling is a flexibility of approach. The complaints handling process should adapt to the needs of a patient and not the other way round. Although there is no single way to handle a complaint, there are some key steps that should always be considered...

In addition to several references in the press to “dirty dentists” this is the month that the case of Dr D’Mello returned to the GDC. More importantly, when the case is reported in the national press it has the potential to suggest that dental surgeries may not be safe or that cross - infection standards have been disregarded. One way to avoid such suspicion is to share your infection control routines with your patients at an early stage when they first come for treatment; adopt an “open house” policy.

When the General Dental Council (GDC) decided to allow certain DCPs direct access to patients as of 1 May 2013, many questions arose. Dental Protection sets out its stall in this article.

Following years of HIV-positive dentists not being allowed to practise in the UK, the Department of Health has lifted the ban, replacing it with a process regular testing and registration

Dental Protection is regularly asked about the obligation of the clinician to record the batch number of each local anaesthetic cartridge when providing dental treatment.