A year in oral health

It always amazes me looking back on the year how far the profession has come. I have long advocated dentistry as a leader in the healthcare industry when it comes to innovation and change. The NHS in England has undergone the biggest reorganisation since its formation, and the decision to abolish primary care trusts and shift

responsibility towards local councils

will take a number of years to take

effect.

 

This shift has, however, had a significant bearing on the decision to fluoridate water supplies. While Public Health England recently announced fluoridating Cumbria’s water supply would recommence, plans to fluoridate Southampton’s water supply are not running as smoothly. Given the re-structure, the county council has sought legal advice as to whether South Central Strategic Health Authority and Southern Water had ‘relevant arrangements’ in place to secure implementation of the scheme

from April 1 this year, which is when responsibility for decision-making transferred to local authorities.

 

Plans to fluoridate Southampton’s water supplies were originally given the go-ahead in February 2009 by the South Central Strategic Health Authority, and after a drawn-out legal battle, the High Court ruled in the authority’s favour.

 

It has always been the British Dental Health Foundation’s view that fluoridating water supplies is one way the Government can help to reduce stark regional inequalities, a great cause for concern. They highlight a clear need for water fluoridation to help tackle these differences, particularly in the more deprived areas of the country. The addition of fluoride in toothpaste

alone has been responsible for reducing decay by up to 50 per cent. Levels of dental decay have also fallen in fluoridated and non-fluoridated areas in the UK, yet only 12 per cent of the population have fluoridated water.

 

 

In April this year the Government announced it would be extending the contract pilot scheme. Around 25 further dental practices were added to the existing 70 programmes as work continues to develop the new contract. The extra sites were brought in to fine tune different parts of the new contract that see dentists paid for the number of patients they care for and the health results they produce, rather than the number of courses of treatment they perform. It will be interesting to see how the scheme progresses as inevitable kinks are ironed out, as it could well improve access for patients.

 

 

In further developments in practice, May also saw the introduction of direct access. After many years of research and consideration the General Dental Council concluded that allowing the public direct access to dental professionals such as dental hygienists and dental therapists will have a positive impact on the oral health of the nation. Times are changing, and I believe direct access will ultimately improve our oral health as a nation and mean more people will get their mouths seen more regularly. This can only be a good thing, and it will be a particular benefit to patients who struggle with fear and anxiety or those who see the dentist's chair as a last resort. The dentist remains the overall custodian of the patient, and anything which is not within the remit of a dental hygienist or therapist will still be referred back to the dentist.

 

 

The Foundation has also been prominently involved in discussions surrounding the Platform for Better Oral Health in Europe. In setting targets for 2020, the collective movement across the continent will hopefully herald oral health improvements as we work together to implement preventive and education policies. Given the International Dental Health Foundation’s work overseas, it has also taken the first steps in translating its core website (www.dentalhealth.org) into a number of different languages. It’s an incredibly exciting project, opening up the largest source of dental health information on the web to millions of people worldwide. The Tell Me About section is hugely popular, and the translation of this section is a significant step in our development.

 

Speaking of projects overseas, it is with great delight that in 2014 National Smile Month, the UK’s largest oral health campaign, will take place in the United Arab Emirates. The Foundation has made some significant strides with the campaign at home in the last five years, and I cannot wait for the project to get underway next year.

 

 

The Foundation’s second annual campaign, Mouth Cancer Action Month, has just finished for this year. This doesn’t mean to say raising awareness with patients and examinations should too, and I am delighted with the number of people who realise how important it is for the profession to take mouth cancer action all year round. After Michael Douglas’ was it-wasn’t it saga over his mouth cancer, the role of the human papillomavirus (HPV) has finally been given the prominence it requires. At the

Mouth Cancer Action Month launch, Prof Margaret Stanley called for boys to be vaccinated as well as girls. Soon HPV will overtake tobacco use as the main risk factor for the disease, and with no clear preventive message to pass onto patients, the Foundation has, and will continue, to lobby for the HPV vaccine for boys.

 

With these changes afoot, I am sure you will agree that 2014 will be an exciting year. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.