Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

A s you read this, GDPUK forum members will have been discussing the new Health Bill, as well as pro- posals from the GDC for revali- dation, the next bête noir. A major topic was when a colleague asked for opinions from others about a request from a patient with chronic leukemia to have her amalgam fillings removed and replaced with composit. The reaction of many dentists is to immedi- ately worry that the patient will not recover, and health will not improve if this is done. On the other hand, if the same patient had attended and asked for re- placement of the same silver fill- ings with tooth-coloured ones for aesthetic reasons, how many of us would hesitate? This led to a heated debate with more than 50 replies. Does the metal in her mouth have an effect on her disease? There are tests which can investigate these matters. Another writer asked us to consider whether chang- ing the fillings would give the patient a positive mental lift. And so the debate swung on from “don’t touch with a barge- pole” to treat like an aesthetic request. Concepts of profession- alism were brought in, aspects of “do no harm”. Another poster suggested making the change slowly to see if there was any benefit to her health. Modern amalgam alloys have more copper in them and latest research links exposure to cop- per as a factor in chronic leuke- mia. Another turn and there was a mention of seriously ill patients clinging onto illogical hopes and being willing to undergo unproven medical treatments, in the hope of success. If a den- tist is investigated by the GDC for this type of claim to treat other diseases, the dentist loses the case and their career. This poster says we must ensure we do not give patients any false hope, and ensure there are no more high profile cases showing lack of professionalism by den- tal colleagues. Two notes of caution, regard- ing emergency drug kits, one report that buccal midozalam is now £274 for a 5ml bottle. Will you be stocking it? Plus a practice inspector was per- turbed that a practice’s emer- gency drugs kit was visible to the public. The principals explained the box had to be easily accessi- ble by the team in an emergen- cy, the inspector insisted it must be locked. A solution was found using a tamper-evident display- ing plastic tag, as used on fire extinguishers. On the same vein, one PCT wrote to dentists insisting that their infection control advice, due to aerosols generated, was that dentists and teams must now wear long sleeves in surgeries. If implemented, this would mean removing cloth- ing too, between patients. This is contrary to advice in HTM 0105. Advice from the fo- rum – ask the PCT which regulation should be ignored, HTM or theirs, or ... wear one short sleeve and one long! DT Wear one short sleeve and one long Tony Jacobs highlights the hot topics of debates in the world of GDPUK About the author Tony Jacobs, 52, is a GDP in the sub- urbs of Manches- ter, in practice with partner Steve La- zarus at 406Dental (www.406dental. com). He has had roles in his LDC, local BDA and with the annual confer- ence of LDCs, and is a local dental adviser for Dental Protection. Nowadays, he concentrates on GDPUK, the web group for UK den- tists to discuss their profession online, www.gdpuk.co.uk. 7GDPUKFebruary 14-20, 2011United Kingdom EditionUnited Kingdom Edition Approximately 6,000 people in the UK annually are diagnosed with oral cancer - with an estimated 2,000 deaths every year (Source: British Dental Health Foundation, www.mouthcancer.org) Oral Cancer – prevention, examination, referral has been designed to support all health professionals by updating their knowledge, highlighting the importance of oral cancer screening, and providing practical tools for communicating with patients and colleagues The programme comprises four topics: 1: The facts - Providing a background into the incidence, causes and development of oral cancer 2: Team Approach - Looking at all aspects of communication both within the team and with patients 3: Screening Examination - Practical advice on improving the opportunistic screening procedure in practice 4: Case Studies - Providing first hand experiences of examining, making referrals and living with oral cancer For more information call us on 020 7400 8989 or log on to www.smile-on.com