Fowey Dental Team Shortlisted For Pilot Scheme
A dental team from Fowey is celebrating after being selected to join the NHS dental contract pilot scheme.
The Noah’s Ark Dental Practice in Fowey is the only practice in Cornwall and one of just five in the South West to be included in the second stage of the pilot programme, which will play an important role in shaping the future of NHS dentistry.
A total of twenty-nine practices in the UK will join the pilot scheme in April. Seventy practices around the country are already involved in the programme launched in 2011.
Noah’s Ark dentist, Charles Major, said he is particularly excited about the shift of focus toward preventative dental care and adopting a new traffic light system, the aim of which is to help people with their oral hygiene and encourage them to take steps to reduce their risk of dental health problems.
The traffic light system enables dentists to give patients a red, amber or green light and is just one measure being trialled as part of the pilot scheme.
The scheme will also encourage dentists to get to know their patients better, with each new patient spending around 30 minutes talking to their dentist during their first appointment. Mr Major said the approach would enable dentists to create a more personalised experience and hopefully enable patients to relax and feel more comfortable and confident during dental appointments.
The pilot scheme will also trial a new payment system for dentists. The current system pays dentists according to the number of courses of treatment they provide, but health bosses and ministers want to adopt a new method where dentists are paid according to the number of patients they treat.
Join this Discussion