We spoke to Emily Pittard, clinical dental technician and co-owner of Hive Dental Laboratory, about how she became a GDC education associate, what it involves and her motivation for doing it.
Emily, you have recently become an education associate for the GDC. What is this like?
To be completely honest, I haven’t yet had much chance to get fully involved with anything.
We attended training which was incredibly in-depth. It gave me some useful insights both from the training team, but also from my peers. It was fascinating to see the breadth of knowledge and backgrounds that had come together to hopefully get a more well-rounded perspective on the dental education currently being delivered.
There is a lot that goes into our training and getting us up to speed on how education should be delivered which I found encouraging because it shows how seriously they take the actual assessments!
What does it involve? How much time does it take up?
Firstly, it involves an ongoing commitment to training and development to make sure we are up to date with the latest requirements.
Other than that, the involvement and time depends on whether you agree to assess a course on behalf of the GDC. If you do, then you will work alongside two other colleagues of differing backgrounds to assess that particular course according to several guidelines laid out by the GDC in their ‘Standards for Education’.
You’ll have discussions with those teaching and those attending the course and gain an insight into their perspectives. Ultimately, you’ll assess whether the course is delivering on expectations.
What was your motivation for doing it?
I wanted to help make some positive changes in the education delivered.
Having attended multiple courses over the years, I know how I have felt as a student. I completed the national with the NEBDN and qualified as a dental nurse in 2010, my diploma in dental technology BTEC in 2014 and also my diploma in clinical dental technology RCSEd in 2021.
I also know where I think changes could be made to improve both the delivery of the course and ultimately its outcome in terms of preparing students for life outside of the educational institute.
As well as this, I thought it would be useful to be able to raise awareness of our role in the dental team. Particularly for my profession as a CDT.
It would also be amazing to raise the awareness of the importance of ongoing education outside of the school room and cross-role education. By doing so, each member of the team would learn about the others and their scopes of practice. As a result, we could all work more cohesively in the ‘real world’.
As you may know, the GDC doesn’t have a very positive reputation. Are you hoping to change this perception?
Well, I should probably first state that I am not speaking on behalf of the GDC. My thoughts and opinions are purely my own and don’t represent the GDC.
That being said, I understand the perception held by some. It would be great to turn that around so we all work better together to create a better environment for our patients and for each other.
In whatever way I can, I will definitely be working towards more fruitful collaboration between everyone. I seem to be working with a lot of like-minded individuals who are also passionate about education being delivered to a high standard which is encouraging.
What advice would you give for anyone else who may be interested in becoming an education associate for the GDC?
Believe in yourself and be passionate about what you think you can bring to the role. And definitely read the ‘Standards for Education’!
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Follow Dentistry.co.uk on Instagram to keep up with all the latest dental news and trends.
