Sebastian Evans

Regular columnist Kevin Lewis ponders how, in these diverse times, defining the term ‘dentistry’ is becoming more and more difficult. Identity crisis History has a reassuring tendency to repeat itself, and much of what causes the greatest surprise, instability and upset in one field is already yesterday’s news in another. The real disappointment is perhaps…

Sharon Holmes of the Dental Arts Studios in London has won the BDPMA & 3M ESPE Practice Manager Award 2007. The announcement was made at the Association’s Annual Conference and Gala Awards at Walton Hall in Warwickshire last month. The prestigious award, now in its fifth year, recognises the range of strategic skills and vision…

So the exams are over for another year. Goodbye hours spent indoors studying, hello lazy days in the sunshine (the unpredictable British weather permitting, of course). Now, you would think it is very easy to relax after you have finished your exams. You finish your last one, head out into the outdoors and taste a…

This patient was seen on referral for ongoing left-sided temporomandibular joint pain. The pain and stiffness of the joint (TMJ) was long standing and recurring. Conservative treatment methods, including physiotherapy, ultrasound and a bite-raising appliance, had not been not successful. The joint had become stiff and the patient complained of very limited opening (2cm inter-incisal).…

Excellent verbal skills are a key ingredient to the success of dental practices. ‘One cannot not communicate’, as the old saying goes. Every practice system – scheduling, customer service and case presentation to name a few – depends on communication. The better you and your team deal with patients, the more successful your practice is…

The woman responsible for introducing the most far-reaching dental reforms in 50 years has left her job insisting that the new NHS contract ‘is working’. Rosie Winterton ended her four-year period as Health Minister adamant that the controversial changes she helped put in place in April 2006 are making it easier for patients to get…

Rosie Winterton, 48, was appointed as Minister of State at the Department of Health in June 2003. As minister for dentistry, she oversaw a recruitment drive to bring overseas dentists to the UK – many from Poland – to fill gaps in the British workforce. In 2005, 312 Poles joined the health service, lifting the…

The news that Rosie Winterton will be replaced as minister for dentistry was met with mixed reactions in political circles. Andrew Murrison, Conservative party spokesman on dentistry, said: ‘I think she’s one of the more pleasant of the current line-up and I’m sorry on a personal level that she will be going elsewhere. ‘However, it’s…

John Chope explains the importance of making sure your DCPs are registered before it’s too late. Are your DCPs registered yet? We are coming up to the halfway point of the two-year transitional registration period for the new DCP groups. This is the period when dental nurses and dental technicians in particular can apply for…

Private equity firm Duke Street Capital has stepped up its battle for control of Oasis Healthcare by raising its offer to over £88m, topping a rival £85m bid from Associated Dental Practices (ADP). As previously reported, Oasis, Britain’s biggest dental group, initially received a £77m bid from Duke Street in June. That offer was then…

Drinking lots of sugary tea can be almost as bad for your teeth as sipping fizzy drinks, the British Dental Health Foundation has warned. Older people who might suffer from recurring decay are particularly at risk, said the dental charity, reacting to a report in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition that claimed drinking tea…

China has vowed to increase its controls on dental care products following alarm over the country’s exported toothpaste being contaminated with a potentially lethal chemical. Countries in North and South America, as well as Asia, have recently halted imports of Chinese-made toothpaste due to its content of diethylene glycol, a low-cost and sometimes deadly substitute…

In about eight weeks Charles Southey will be near to the summit of the world’s largest free standing mountain trekking in temperatures as low as -22°C – is he mad? Mount Kilimanjaro in northeastern Tanzania reaches 5,895 metres or 19,340 ft. Around 15,000 people attempt to climb the mountain every year and only 40% reach…

Access to NHS dentistry in Norfolk is set to improve after the local primary care trust was given increased government funds to help its struggling service. Norfolk Primary Care Trust will receive an extra £1.1m to put towards dental services. Thousands of patients have been turned away by dentists over the last few months because…

Michael McGimpsey, the Minister for Health in Northern Ireland, is aiming to introduce tailor-made dental contracts in the Province. Mr McGimpsey, speaking during an Assembly debate, confirmed that the contract which was controversially introduced in England and Wales last April would not be extended to Northern Ireland. He said the new bespoke dental system would…

New guidance from the GDC on how its members, staff and others acting on its behalf should manage their other interests when undertaking their Council roles has just come into effect. It is the first time in the UK dental world that a document on managing interests has been published. The new guidance, Principles of…

Oasis Healthcare has confirmed its support to an £85m takeover offer from its largest shareholder, Associated Dental Practices (ADP). Following rounds of talks, Oasis, the UK’s biggest corporate dentistry group, decided to recommend ADP’s 91p-a-share bid for the company, turning its back on a previously recommended bid from private equity firm Duke Street Capital. A…

The General Dental Council has appointed the members of a new board to help guide the development of education and training for dentists wanting to become specialists. The Specialist Dental Education Board (SDEB), which is chaired by professor Kevin O’Brien, will have an important role in advising the GDC on the reorganisation and running of…

More than 99 per cent of dentists in the first completed cycle have met the General Dental Council’s continuing professional development (CPD) requirements. By law, dentists must complete 250 hours of CPD every five years, 75 of which must be verifiable. GDC chief executive and registrar Duncan Rudkin said: ‘We are pleased that the overwhelming…