The General Dental Council (GDC) has published the outcome of its call for evidence on the structure and operation of the overseas registration examination (ORE).
The regulator conducted the call for evidence to help inform its long-term work to reform the international registration process.
Of the 170 respondents, 97 were registered dental professionals, 40 were dental students or register applicants, 17 were on behalf of organisations and 16 were patients/members of the public.
Having reviewed the feedback, the GDC reports that the responses did not identify a ‘significant demand for immediate structural changes’ to the ORE.
However, it did reveal ‘a clear desire for improvements in the examination’s availability’.
The regulator has confirmed that this feedback will guide its planning for the future development of international routes to registration.
In particular, it will consider how to make ORE rules more flexible, such as the number of attempts and reapplication options when candidates have reached the time limit or exhausted all attempts.
The GDC will also consider introducing a practical test for internationally qualified dental hygienists and therapists, though there are ‘no immediate plans’ to do so.
ORE should be ‘no more burdensome than is necessary’
Stefan Czerniawski is the GDC executive director of strategy. On publishing the call for evidence outcome, he said: ‘With public protection as our overriding priority, hearing about and learning from the experiences of ORE candidates and those who want to register in the UK is incredibly important to us.
‘We will not compromise on the standards for entry to the UK register, but the application process should be no more burdensome than is necessary to achieve that.
‘The report will inform our future approach to registration for internationally qualified dentists and dental care professionals.’
He also stated the GDC is calling on the government for an indication on its plans for provisional registration for overseas qualified dentists.
He added: ‘The proposals for provisional registration would provide an additional and alternate route to registration for dentists who want to work in the UK, but it is a complex solution that will take time to deliver and will only work effectively if delivered in collaboration with the sector.’
This comes after the GDC released more dates for upcoming overseas registration exam (ORE) sittings earlier this month.
The regulator said it is working with the current providers to increase the capacity of ORE exams in the UK – with plans to further increase capacity in 2025.
You can read the full outcome report here.
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