The next three letters are in response to Mark Bishop's opinion piece - The patient-dentist relationship and the future of dentistry - published in the BDJ in December 2018.

Sir, Mark Bishop is to be congratulated on putting into words in such a clear, concise and precise manner, what so many of us, especially of the older generation and retired, have been aware of and frustrated by for so long now - the 'black hole' he describes dentistry disappearing/already disappeared into.

As I read his paper1 I found myself agreeing with absolutely every single point he raised and discussed. It would be difficult to better the solutions he offers to bring about the immediate changes required if the dental profession is to be saved from the abyss into which it is so rapidly descending.

If dentistry in the UK is to have a future and regain some of the reputation it deserves and be released from the shackles of the now totally discredited General Dental Council, the BDA must take very serious cognisance of his proposals and act immediately to help bring about the changes suggested and that the profession now so desperately needs and deserves.