Open letter to CDO

The communication describes the BDA as having ‘agreed’ to the FFT requirement that was imposed on the profession. The BDA has questioned the value of the test to both patients and practitioners.

Letter to Chief Dental Officer:

Barry Cockcroft

Chief Dental Officer

NHS England

11 February 2015

Dear Barry,

We have seen today the message from NHS England to dentists concerning the Friends and Family test readiness questionnaire.

The NHS England message indicates that “The FFT requirement has been agreed with the BDA”. We would dispute that this is an accurate statement. As you know, whilst recognising the inevitable implementation of FFT in dentistry, the BDA continues to have reservations about the value of the test to either patients or dentists. The FFT test has been imposed in dentistry following the regular annual GDPC discussions with NHS England over efficiency savings, and accepted by the BDA in that context. That is certainly not the same thing as the BDA agreeing to the FFT requirement.

Yours sincerely

Dr John Milne

Chair

General Dental Practice Committee