Eastman celebrates innovative new course on systematic review training
Rise in applicants to dental school welcomed by BDA
New figures published by UCAS revealing an 18.2% rise in the number of applicants to dental school have been welcomed by the BDA.
The increase highlights dentistry's popularity amongst young people – as well as being intellectually and practically rewarding, research has shown that the public have a high regard for dentists and the work they carry out.
Dr John Renshaw, chairman of the BDA's Executive Board said that the BDA is delighted by the fact that so many people want to enter the profession. Dentistry, he said, is a caring and demanding career where you can make a real difference to people's lives.
An iron age
The annual Ironmongers' Lecture 2002 which centred on 'Gingival hyperplasia' was given at the Eastman Dental Institute, UCL, London recently. International guest Professor Oslei Paes de Almeida, head of oral pathology at the University of Campinas, SP, Brazil presented the lecture.
GDC election candidates announced
The nomination period for dentist and PCD candidates standing for election to the new GDC has closed. Voting will soon be underway. On 18 November 2002, dentists with a registered address in England, Scotland, Wales, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands, and dental hygienists and dental therapists with an enrolled address in the UK, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands will be sent a voting paper. They will also receive a Candidates' Who's Who for the constituency in which they are entitled to vote. In the dentists' election there are 39 candidates for the 11 seats in the constituency of England, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands; 6 candidates for the 2 seats in the constituency of Scotland; and 5 candidates for the 1 seat in the constituency of Wales.
In the PCD election, there is one constituency (the UK, Isle of Man and the Channel Islands). Six candidates are standing for the four seats in this constituency. For the first time, all dental members of the Council will be elected by their peers. Like the dentist members, PCDs will be elected to the Council direct rather than through the Dental Auxiliaries Committee, which will cease to exist.
Appealing to the profession, President of the GDC, Professor Nairn Wilson said that the election is a milestone in the reform of Council, and that it is important that there is a strong turn-out from the electorate. Nairn Wilson says that this is now an opportunity for dental members to consider the election candidates and to use their vote to ensure a Council membership able to take on the challenges which lie ahead for the new GDC. Completed voting papers must be returned by midday on 9 December 2002.
BDJ welcomes new asssociate editor
Martin Ashley, Principal at St Peters Studio Dental Clinic in Bedford, has joined the BDJ as its new Associate Editor, replacing Elinor Parker.
His interest in clinical excellence and business management is reflected in his practice's achievement of 'Investors in People' status.
Lobbyist chairs Audit Commission
James Strachan has been appointed chairman of the Audit Commission, one of the highest posts reached in Britain by a deaf man. Mr Strachan, 48, has been chief executive of the Royal National Institute for Deaf People for the past five years, earning a reputation as an effective lobbyist for disability rights.
He will be paid £81,000 a year for a three-day week heading the watchdog that scrutinises the NHS, housing, the criminal justice system and local government.
BSPD 50th anniversary conference
The South Yorkshire Branch of the British Society of Paediatric Dentistry (BSPD) recently hosted the Society's annual scientific meeting in Sheffield, on the theme of growth and development.
This was a particular landmark in the Society's history since it was celebrating its 50th anniversary. The conference, held at Chatsworth House, saw 24 past presidents of the Society attending, together with Professor Nairn Wilson, chairman of the GDC. The conference offered the opportunity to make several presentations...
The 2002 BSPD Young Researchers Prize (sponsored by 3M ESPE) went to C.A. Hood, M. Bock, M.T. Hosey, A. Ayoub from University of Glasgow Dental School, Glasgow.
The 2002 BSPD Poster Prize (sponsored by Dentsply) went to A. Maguire, W. Baqir (Newcastle Dental School), I. Sharkey (Newcastle Hospitals NHS Trust) and J.H. Nunn (Dublin Dental School, Ireland).
The 2002 BSPD Clinical Case presentation (sponsored by South Yorkshire Branch of the BSPD) went to R.A.E. Bryan and M.T. Hosey from Glasgow Dental Hospital and School, Glasgow, UK.
Professor Phil Holloway from Manchester received Honorary Life Membership of the BSPD at the 50th Anniversary dinner in Sheffield.
Dentists ask to prescribe nicotine patches
The BDA has called upon the Government to allow dentists to prescribe nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and Zyban.
Mouth cancer kills around 1,700 people every year in the UK alone, with smoking one of the main causes. Despite this, NRT continues to be omitted from the Dental Practitioners' Formulary and there is very little formal training of the dental team to give advice on giving up smoking.
Dr Gordon Watkins, chairman of the BDA's Health and Science Committee, says that smoking has a profound effect on oral heath, from the social problems of bad breath through to mouth cancer. Dentists see more patients each year than any other health professionals in the UK and so have access to people who may otherwise slip through the net when it comes to getting support to stop smoking.
He says that by allowing dentists to prescribe nicotine replacement therapy and Zyban, and training them in how to help people stop smoking, the results could be significant.
New dental practice is the business
The Crescent Specialist Dental Centre, in Plymouth has been selected as one of Britain's top 10 young businesses in the 'Start Up Stars' competition run by HSBC Bank, Sky News, and the Daily Express.
Jeremy Peak, principal of the practice, accepted a trophy in front of 250 leading businesmen and women at London's Savoy Hotel. The practice also received £3000 worth of consultancy services, courtesy of business specialists Cromer Consulting, and software company Intuit.
Businesses were judged on the quality of their planning and management. The competition attracted well over 400 entries, and was open to all businesses, regardless of size or sector, that had been trading for less than 2 years. The award of such a business accolade is unique amongst dental practices.
The Crescent Specialist Dental Centre was established in 2000, and is already one of Britain's most successful dental referral practices, providing a broad range of specialist dentistry. The practice has been very innovative in its management, and has involved all staff in strategic planning and decision making. Staff also have a direct stake in the business through a profit share scheme.
In 2001, The Crescent Specialist Dental Centre was one of the first practices in the UK to be awarded BDA's 'Good Practice' scheme accreditation, and is awaiting assessment for the Investors in People standard.
1st Dental acquires Ramsey Dental Laboratory
1st Dental Laboratories, the UK's first publicly listed consolidated dental laboratories group, has announced the acquisition of Ramsey Dental Laboratory, on the Isle of Man for a consideration of £20,000 in cash, adding to the four existing dental laboratories in its company. Ramsey will become part of Aesthetic Dental, a full service chain of laboratories situated across the UK which is 100% owned and managed by 1st Dental.
The laboratory is the only full service dental laboratory on the Isle of Man. Chairman Andrew Garner says that the acquisition of Ramsey reflects the company's 'buy and build' strategy.
Ramsey will offer a collection and delivery service to dental practices on the Isle of Man and will benefit from the ability to outsource work to other 1st Dental laboratories as expertise demands.
Oasis proposed acquisition of Ora Dental
Oasis Healthcare Plc, the AIM-listed UK dental care operator, has announced the acquisition of Ora Dental Group Holdings Limited – a corporate dentistry operator with 10 sites in London and the South East, for a maximum consideration of £5 million in cash subject to performance.
The geographic coverage of Ora complements that of Oasis which is predominantly based in the Midlands and North of England. It is hoped that without any increase in turnover, Ora operating margins will be enhanced through reductions in direct costs and practice overheads given the greater purchasing leverage of Oasis. The combined business will operate from 85 sites with annualised turnover of over £43 million
Oasis chairman Ron Trenter says that consolidation within the rapidly developing corporate dentistry market is inevitable and that the company are delighted that the excellent operations developed over the past three years under the Ora brand will now become part of the Oasis group. Trenter says that Oasis consider this acquisition to fit extremely well with the company's long term objective to become the leading UK provider of high quality private dentistry.
Borehamwood practice achieves IiP standard
The highly motivated team at the longest established High Street practice in Borehamwood (for 55 years) have turned their practice from an outdated, directionless dental surgery into a modern business guided by the Investors in People programme. After achieving IiP, the team decided to wait for a year while applying the principles into their practice before going public with this achievement. The practice manager says that offering patients cutting edge dentistry has been one of the biggest challenges to the business.
Diary
January 2003
Commonwealth Medico-Legal Conference Date: 17.01.03–18.01.03 Venue: Kuala Lumpur Contact: Alice Joseph, c/o Malaysian Medical Association, 4th Floor, MMA House, 124 Jalan Pahang, 53000 Kuala Lumpur. Tel: +03 40411375 Fax: +03 40434444 Website: www.mma.org.my/event/cmlc
March 2003
American Association for Dental Research (AADR) Exhibition Date: 13.03.03–15.03.03 Venue: San Antonio, Texas, USA Contact: Michael Dominguez, CMP Exhibits Manager, IADR/AADR Central Office, 1619 Duke Street, Alexandria, VA 22314-3406, USA. Tel: (001) 202 887 0788 Fax: (001) 202 861 9799 michael@iadr.org
April 2003
South East Thames Division FGDP Scientific Meeting: 'Will they tell us something new?' Date: 11.04.03 Venue: The Salomons Centre, Southborough, Kent Contact: Mrs Elizabeth Jarrett, Administrative Secretary, FGDP (UK) SE Thames Division, 'Sunrise' 1 Park Crescent, Crowborough, East Sussex. TN6 2QP. Tel: +44 (0)1892 654384 elisabeth.jarrett@btinternet.com
May 2003
ADI Congress and Exhibition: Implantology Teamwork Date: 09.05.03–10.05.03 Venue: International Congress Centre, Birmingham Contact: Mrs Cherry Wilson, ADI Secretariat, 37 Halford Road, Richmond, Surrey. TW10 6AW. Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 0321 Fax: +44 (0)20 8940 0337 adi.uk@btinternet.com
June 2003
SAAD 10th International Dental Congress on Modern Pain Control Date: 05.06.03–07.06.03 Venue: Edinburgh, Scotland Contact: Congress Secretariat, SAAD2003, Concorde Services, 4B 50 Speirs Wharf, Glasgow. G4 9TB. Tel: +44 (0)141 331 0123 Fax: +44 (0)141 331 0234
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News. Br Dent J 193, 671–674 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bdj.4801658
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.bdj.4801658
