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Dental Therapist

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  • System
    System Posts: 178,352 Community Admin
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    brook2jack wrote: »
    Nhs work requires you to work at an unsustainable rate and new colleagues with debts of £80,000 to pay off for training often have to take jobs where the high needs of new patients make it difficult to sustain that level of work. So they move on until they have sufficient training and experience to specialise, get a private job or get a job in a nice family nhs practice with a stable ,low needs patient base.

    The UK is a ridiculously expensive place to study for a degree, and many are choosing to go abroad. An interesting article about it here:
    http://www.theguardian.com/money/2014/aug/15/students-say-no-50000-debt-uk-universities
    One 18-year-old decided to take an apprenticeship as a dental nurse with the hope of later studying to become one of these 'dental therapists'.


    Regarding working at an 'unsustainable rate', that applies to any NHS healthcare, as I'm sure most junior doctors/GPs/anyone who's sat in a hospital waiting room will attest to.
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  • welshdent
    welshdent Posts: 2,000 Forumite
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    The difference being that nurses wages are not coming out of the doctors earnings. And for that matter the receptionists, cleaners, decontamination staff, the cost of the equipment and materials used to fill your teeth etc etc ....
  • justme111
    justme111 Posts: 3,531 Forumite
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    You have chosen to pursue NHS brand , ie see whoever offers treatment on the NHS. In the practices where there is high turnover. Hence you were not able to build a relationship with a dentist. It does not mean it is the best or only possible way. It is the cheapest way.
    The word "dilemma" comes from Greek where "di" means two and "lemma" means premise. Refers usually to difficult choice between two undesirable options.
    Often people seem to use this word mistakenly where "quandary" would fit better.
  • System
    System Posts: 178,352 Community Admin
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    welshdent wrote: »
    The difference being that nurses wages are not coming out of the doctors earnings. And for that matter the receptionists, cleaners, decontamination staff, the cost of the equipment and materials used to fill your teeth etc etc ....

    GP surgeries are businesses, and would be run as such.

    Hospitals is a slightly different scenario, where the NHS (ie the tax payer) foots the bill for staff.
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • brook2jack
    brook2jack Posts: 4,563 Forumite
    edited 19 May 2016 at 1:55PM
    There is quite a difference. The GP surgery has direct grants for certain aspects of its running costs. Many of the clinical staff such as practice nurses are directly employed by the NHS and have access to the superannuation scheme.The IT costs which are substantial are directly covered by the NHS . There are also payments for the running ,maintainance, updating and equipping of premises.

    GPs can claim education allowances to pay for postgraduate education and for them to be paid whilst taking additional training , they can also claim locum payments to cover periods of absence. http://www.bma.org.uk/-/media/files/pdfs/practical%20advice%20at%20work/contracts/gpfocuspracticefund.pdf

    All of this is covered in a dental practice by the fees brought in by treatment only. There are no other contributions made to pay for the running of the practice,payment of staff, buying or maintaining equipment, paying for compulsory training for dentists and staff etc etc.
  • belfastgirl23
    belfastgirl23 Posts: 8,026 Forumite
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    Just to say thanks to all our dental experts on MSE - it's so interesting to have an insight into this world. We hear so much about the pressures the medical profession are under but relatively little about dentistry. It's simultaneously fascinating and horrifying. I know dentistry isn't exactly going down the mines but the way dentists are scheduled and the pressure they work under would drive me crazy!
  • System
    System Posts: 178,352 Community Admin
    10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    Just to say thanks to all our dental experts on MSE - it's so interesting to have an insight into this world. We hear so much about the pressures the medical profession are under but relatively little about dentistry. It's simultaneously fascinating and horrifying. I know dentistry isn't exactly going down the mines but the way dentists are scheduled and the pressure they work under would drive me crazy!

    Hospital doctors are under far more pressure in terms of time and responsibilities, I would say. Not that it should be a competition between the two!
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • brook2jack
    brook2jack Posts: 4,563 Forumite
    Just to say thanks to all our dental experts on MSE - it's so interesting to have an insight into this world. We hear so much about the pressures the medical profession are under but relatively little about dentistry. It's simultaneously fascinating and horrifying. I know dentistry isn't exactly going down the mines but the way dentists are scheduled and the pressure they work under would drive me crazy!


    Unfortunately it also often drives dentists crazy . This is an American article but has common themes
    http://www.oralhealthgroup.com/features/stress-in-dentistry-it-could-kill-you/
  • Dill
    Dill Posts: 1,743 Forumite
    In America especially, dentists are very well compensated financially. It's not unheard of for American dentists to have two homes, an expensive car, pay for all their kids to get through college, and enjoy a very good standard of living generally.
    They're not doing too badly here either ;) much as some on this board would like to tell you otherwise..



    OP I have never encountered a dental therapist, personally, and I've been going to dentists here for 4 decades! It does sound like job creation, especially if they need to send someone back to a "proper" dentist if something unexpected crops up or the filling turns out to be more complicated than they first thought. If it were me I would stick with the actual dentist, especially if you are happy with their work, but it depends what you're comfortable doing.
  • brook2jack
    brook2jack Posts: 4,563 Forumite
    Dental therapists have been around since the First World War! The association for dental therapists was formed in 1962 so they are hardly new. https://www.badt.org.uk

    However they are mostly employed in community dental surgeries treating people who cannot be seen in general practice due to disability or phobias etc.

    They are not generally employed much at the moment in general practice as the economics are quite difficult.
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