DTUK1510

Make sure you follow best practice procedures for the sedat June 7-13, 201018 United Kingdom EditionEducation Don’t read this... An Xtraordinary Indemnity Programme for the Whole Practice Lower professional indemnity subscriptions Free personal indemnity for every dental nurse and/or dental technician you employ for both clinical negligence and professional matters Free Indemnity for practice managers and receptionists Dispute resolution assistance for disputes between professional colleagues Free annual subscriptions to a comprehensive online information resource including a wide range of business and healthcare legislation and regulatory requirements CPD for the whole dental team Employment law helpline Practice management and clinical audit tools to make your practice safer, more easily managed and more successful For more information go to www.dentalprotection.org/uk/dplxtra or call our Membership Helpline on 0845 718 7187 ...unless you are interested in: 2453 DPL ad A4:Layout 1 10/08/2009 09:18 Page 1 S edation can be provided by using drugs in several ways such as oral, inha- lation or intravenous deliv- ery, although each has its own merits and risks. Sedation is considered to lie within the skill of a general practitioner who has received appropriate post- graduate training. Nervous patients Some patients find it difficult and distressing to accept even the most routine of dental pro- cedures when fully conscious and aware. Other patients, who will normally have no dif- ficult in accepting routine proce- dures, might feel the need for se- dation when undertaking more complex or lengthy procedures. Certain surgical procedures, co- mplex prosthodontics or endodo- ntics might fall into this category. Sedation has been linked in the past to dental anaesthe- sia. However, the move in most countries is away from the pro- vision of general anaesthesia for most primary dental care pro- cedures and, where it is deemed appropriate to provide it, to do so in specialist centres staffed by experienced medically qualified specialist anaesthetists with ap- propriate postgraduate training, and supported by experienced nursing and recovery teams who have received specific training in the field of dental sedation. Many drugs used in seda- tion have the potential to induce anaesthesia. It is therefore im- portant that dentists practising sedation should ensure that the drugs and techniques used carry a margin of safety sufficient to render the loss of conscious- ness highly unlikely. There are very strict requirements relat- ing to the provision of general anaesthesia in many countries and dentists have had difficul- ties in the past when a patient undergoing sedation has lapsed into inadvertent anaesthesia. In general, a dentist should be able to maintain verbal contact with a sedated patient at all times. One precaution which has been adopted in many countries, is the stipulation that only a sin- gle sedative drug should be used, Sedation: management of risk Dental sedation is a safe and effective method of anxiety control for patients undergoing dental treatment but you need to have the proper procedures in place, says Dental Protection