After few delays on my train journey to Birmingham, I arrived in time to hear Nicholas Talyor’s briefing at BDIA Conference, Oct 2017 on the progress of Health Education England (HEE) project for the reform of dental education. The aim of this post is to amplify and reach out to a larger number of DCPs, to engage and contribute to the  reform of their education and training. 

In recent years, various reports and academic papers on the reform dental education and training were published,these are recent examples:

• • 2014, Health Education England “Securing the Future of the Workforce Supply: Dental care professionals stock take” . For the full report click here.
• • 2013, the GDC removed its barrier for Direct Access to dental hygienists and therapists to see patients without having to be seen by a dentist before hand. To read more on Direct Access click here.
• • 2009, Steele Report, May 2011 NHS England rolled out “Dental Quality Outcomes Framework (DQOF).The objective is to develop a model of health care that is appropriate to maintain the changing oral health needs of the population. For the full report click here.

Where are we now :

 Adult oral health in England has significantly improved in recent decades; a trend which is expected to continue in to the future.At the same time, the population is ageing. To meet these needs, in August 2017 HEE in collaboration with Office of Chief Dental Officer set up the Advancing Dentistry project for the reform of dental education and training.

In August 2017 the project team was set up, headed by Nicholas Taylor and supported by a civil servant with several clinical experts and project managers. The team commenced work on 29th Sept 2017, the job of the team is not to make decisions but to advise.  This is how Nicholas Taylor described the HEE project:

Over the next few months, the project team will explore and test the future direction of dental education and training through widespread engagement with stakeholders across the system, it is an opportunity to shape reforms to dental education and training and ensure that the project team fulfill its overall purpose of supporting the delivery of excellent healthcare and health improvement to the patients and population of England. The project team will be holding engagement events to develop future models and test out ideas with key stakeholders, the profession is invited to join the conversation. The project team set up the following work streams, opened for comments and feedbacks from the dental profession:

• • Training pathways
• • Post foundation training
• • Building on scope of practice
• • Economic models for the reform of training and education
• • Short term adjustments to start the whole process of reform

View this 4 min video to set the scene.