Budget cuts could reduce the quality of dental education
Cuts in university and college funding could have serious implications for the quality of dental education and training, according to the British Dental Foundation.
The warning comes in the light of the Higher Education Funding Council for England’s announcement that funding for universities and higher education colleges will be cut in the coming academic year. According to representatives from the BDA, this decrease in funding could reduce the quality of the graduates and future dentists in this country, as students will not have access to the resources and practical training that they require.
Budget cuts will also affect university staff, with many universities being forced to make some members of staff redundant; this means students will learn in larger groups and will lose valuable access to some of the most knowledgeable and highly trained professionals in the UK.
Funding for dental academia is currently funded by the HEFCE and the NHS, meaning that further reductions may be announced as the NHS budget is cut as a means of trying to recuperate money lost during the recession. If the budget is cut significantly this could have very serious implications for the future of health and dental care in the UK, as the current students and future professionals will have received the appropriate level of teaching and training.
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