Latest Updates from the GDC

A view from the Chair: the dental workforce is a complex issue   

Workforce issues and the delivery of NHS care are hitting the headlines again today. In his February blog post, GDC Chair, Lord Toby Harris, talks about these challenges and the changes being made to our international registration processes, including how we’re working to reform the Overseas Registration Exam as we start the process to establish new contracts for delivery from 2025.

Our Chair also says goodbye and thank you to our Executive Director of Legal and Governance, Lisa Marie Williams, and confirms the further four-year appointments of Council members Angie Heilman MBE and Laura Simons.

Dental reform and recovery plan for NHS England

We have today welcomed the government’s commitment to improving the routes through which internationally qualified dental professions can register to practise in the UK, as set out in its plan to recover and reform NHS dentistry.

Our case for the introduction of provisional registration for internationally qualified dentists has also been included in the plan. The idea is to bring dentists into the workforce more quickly. We will need to work with the government to bring about the legislative changes necessary to create the provisional registration route – and with the health services and education providers of all four nations to develop the practical arrangements required.

Are you thinking about your next personal development plan?  

During our recent work to understand your experiences of the CPD scheme, we heard that around a third of dental professionals wanted more help to create a personal development plan (PDP). Our Head of Upstream Regulation, Ross Scales, provides tips and guidance on how to produce a PDP that will support the delivery of professional learning and development needs, in his new blog post. 

Updated guidance on indemnity and insurance

This is a reminder that our updated guidance on indemnity and insurance comes into effect from 12 February 2024.

Although the revised guidance does not introduce any new requirements for dental professionals, it now provides more information to better support dental professionals to meet their responsibilities towards patients. The guidance now also includes information on the additional benefits to consider when choosing cover, such as wellbeing support for dental professionals.

You will be able to read or download the revised guidance on our website.

Improving the tone of our fitness to practise letters

Many of you have told us that we need to improve the tone of our communications used as part of our fitness to practise processes. Those who have been through an investigation told us that we needed to provide clearer and more empathetic communications and to give more information on the health and wellbeing support available to dental professionals. We agree, and last year prioritised completing a review of these communications to make these improvements.

We are now putting all of our revised communications into use in our fitness to practise processes and updating other related content on our website. We will have deployed all of these revised resources by the end of February, and would like to thank the stakeholders who helped us to review key pieces of correspondence during the review.  

Consultation on format of hearings closes 15 February

We are inviting views on proposals that will mean all practice committee and registration appeal committee hearings will be held remotely by default, while providing for requests for hearings to be held in a different format to be considered and decided fairly.

Please submit your comments by 15 February 2024.