The BADN calls for recognition of dental nurses’ contribution to dentistry

This does, however, raise the question of the number of registered dental nurses necessary to provide such support – and why, despite several thousand student dental nurses qualifying and registering every year, a similar number fail to re-register each July and leave the profession.

BADN president Jacqui Elsden explains, “The recent pandemic has served to highlight why there are currently insufficient dental nurses in the UK. Although NHS and mixed practices received their NHS funding as normal – and a condition of that funding was that they continued to pay their staff as normal – many refused to pay their dental nurses in full, leaving them with little or no income.

“Despite requests from the BADN to waive or lower the ARF, or to allow monthly payments to ease the financial burden on dental nurses in particular, the GDC refused to recognise the dire financial plight of the largest registrant group and insisted on full payment of £114 by July 31. This has led to more than 3,500 dental nurses failing to re-register – having had no income since March, many of them just can’t afford to.