Sir, we were very interested to read the recent letter from S. Ifeacho regarding dental patients in A&E (BDJ 2007; 202: 2).

We are currently monitoring the number of dental patients and their treatment at the Emergency Department (ED) at Salisbury District Hospital.

An average of 26 dental patients are seen every month in the ED. Using data available we predict that there will be a 23% increase in dental attendances in the year following the introduction of the new dental contracts.

The Oral and Maxillofacial team have worked closely with the ED to develop algorithms for the assessment and treatment of dental patients in the ED. These have been welcomed by staff in the ED and result in 68% of patients being appropriately dealt with in the department without the need for further referral.

We highly commend and support the idea of establishing close working partnerships between EDs and local GDPs. We believe that this will benefit all those involved, especially the patients.