‘Phased recovery plan’ for dental practices, says National Clinical Director
A “phased recovery plan” for dental practices is being prepared by the Scottish Government, Jason Leitch, the National Clinical Director, said today.
Speaking at the daily COVID-19 briefing hosted by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, Leitch also paid tribute to dental teams across Scotland – for their advice to patients, for providing urgent care, and for redeploying to other parts of the health and social care system.
Leitch said: “The chief dental officer, Tom Ferris, is working hard in consultation with the profession and is preparing a phased recovery plan for high street dental practices so they can go back to providing the care you expect them to bring to local communities.
“In line with our learning from other countries throughout this pandemic, on 7 May we published a review of the national recommendations for dental recovery in 11 countries for structuring and restarting dental care – to help inform our work here in Scotland.
“That review has been so well received that the World Health Organisation has sent it to the 190 chief dental officers that the WHO is in touch with.”
Leitch qualified as a dentist in 1991 and was as a consultant oral surgeon in Glasgow before becoming a Quality Improvement Fellow at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in Boston and, in 2007, joining the Scottish Government.
He added: “I’d like to give a big thank you to all of the dental teams across Scotland, for giving advice to patients, for staffing and providing urgent care. And for those who have redeployed to other areas; call centres, NHS 24 and other parts of our health and social care system in this pandemic. Thank you sincerely for everything you’ve done.”
The Scottish Dental Clinical Effectiveness Programme (SDCEP) has invited all dental professionals to complete a survey to inform the plan for a return to practice.
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