Fresh Dental Care Web Log

Fluoride and money

A toothless argument

Writing for the Guardian, Peter Preston chastises what he deems to be a “rigid, embattled nation” for allowing the “success” of the anti-fluoridation lobby. He urges readers not to get “bogged down” by scientific “tit for tat” and acknowledge that “350 million or more” people around the globe are drinking fluoridated water and meanwhile “show no evident sign of debility as a result (bar a little occasional staining) and enjoy markedly less dental decay.” He suggests that dissidents are simply more pro-active in pursuing their argument and calls for a greater challenge from “the dozily reasonable who know that fluoridation is a good thing for their kids.”

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/aug/09/fluoridation-southampton-water-politics

Look who’s smiling

Also writing for the Guardian, and following last week’s media coverage of dental earnings and salaries, Emine Saner provides a detailed analysis of “the commercialisation of teeth” exploring the evolution of both NHS dental care and patient needs, as well as the nature of dentistry as a business.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/aug/08/dentists-earnings-nhs-private-practice

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/aug/08/commercialisation-teeth-dentist-income

Marcus "I am completly in favour of fluoridation of the drinking water in the UK. We only need one part to one million parts water to dramatically reduce tooth decay"

" I am a reader of the Guardian newspaper and the articles above on link are not especially kind to dentists - you must make up your own mind. It discusses how much money some dentists earn. Take it with a pinch of salt; the way I look at it is that if I was going for a private operation on my eyes, for instance, I would want my eye surgeon happy and well rewarded!"

Sweet tooth

Big Cook Little Cook and the dentist

The latest episode of CBeebies programme Big Cook Little Cook sees ‘big cook’ Ben suffer with toothache while he serves up a ‘watermelon smile’ with ‘toothpaste dressing’ for the dentist in the dining room.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0078sr1/Big_Cook_Little_Cook_Series_2_Dentist/

Marcus: " Remember, it's the sugar that you eat that causes tooth decay and you brush your teeth mainly for the sake of gum health. I think big cook Ben needs a trip to the dentist, not just to provide him with a healthy snack of water melon, but to get his tooth fixed ASAP."

The Dental Triangle

NHS follows rules that guarantees failure, says Civitas

The Telegraphhighlights a report on targets and bureaucracy from Civitas, the Institute for the Study of Civil Society, which claims that the NHS is “guaranteed to fail” following “every known rule that guarantees failure in the business world.” The report says a “top-down target culture” has taken focus from providing “high quality care to the patient” and suggests the answer is to “treat patients as customers not as ‘the market.’”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/5932832/NHS-follows-rules-that-guarantees-failure-says-Civitas.html

 

 Marcus "My friend and coach Chris Barrow taught me about the customer service triangle

 

                                            fast service

                                       /                        \

                                   /                                \

                          high quality____________low price

You cannot run a sustainable business satisfying all three corners of the triangle. This unfortunately is what they are trying to do in the dental health service.

My work as a private dentist hopefully satisfies two points of the triangle namely high quality and fast service."

Ugly Betty should have Invisalign

Dentists attack Ugly Betty’s braces

The British Orthodontic Society has criticised the “detrimental” portrayal of wire braces by the US television programme Ugly Betty, whose titular heroine, Betty Suarez, who continues to wear braces into the show’s third season, is “irresponsibly” portrayed as ugly. A report from the Telegraph claims dentists are worried that such stereotyping “could discourage young viewers from seeking corrective treatment,” adding that the programme does not provide a “true reflection of orthodontic practises.”  

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/5817028/Dentists-attack-Ugly-Bettys-braces.html

 Marcus " Orthodontists are a little sensitive about this and maybe they have a point. It is unfortunate to portray someone as 'ugly' because they wear a brace! However, I don't use that type of brace;  I use Invisalign which is practically invisible - please see the web site.

www.invisalign.com/generalapp/gb/en/index.html 

If she had that she wouldn't be Ugly Betty, and then what would the show be called?"

Robot dental patients!

Dentists practice on robot patients

Trainee dentists in Japan are now able to practise their skills on a robot patient designed to simulate a patient’s reaction to the dentist, reports BBC online. Simroid, the robot patient, has sensors built into its teeth and body and is capable of replicating blinks and “muffled gurgles” suggesting the ‘patient’s’ level  of comfort (or discomfort) during treatment. Professor Naotake Shibui from Nippon Dental University Hospital, who invented the prototype, says Simroid helps the trainees not only understand the technique, but also the patient’s feelings.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8137007.stm

Sweet remedy

The Daily Express and the Metro today both include brief health reports describing the teeth saving properties of an oral syrup containing natural sweetener xylitol. According to the reports, the sweetener acts as an antibacterial agent against the organisms which cause dental caries. Researchers from Washington University, who carried out a study on children aged nine to 15 months, suggest that an 8g dose of xylitol a day, in two daily doses, “could prevent up to 70 per cent of decayed teeth.”

 Marcus "Robot patients!....could only happen in the land of robots, Japan! I don't think that working on a robot simulator will really be a good substitute for the real thing, but its an interesting idea for dental students"

" The xylitol article sounds good, doesn't it? As I've said before, I think that applied mouth washes and the like are the way forward with decay and gum disease, but always remember to brush and floss and don't eat sweets frequently."

Bad breath pass the coffee

How coffee could cure bad breath

Compounds found in coffee beans prevent the release of bacteria responsible for halitosis, according to a study carried out by Tel Aviv University.  Reports from the Daily Mail and Daily Expressnote the work of Professor Mel Rosenberg, who has spent two decades studying the diagnosis and treatment of halitosis, and who is the inventor of the Dentyl range of products. He claims that while coffee has always carried a reputation for causing bad breath, tests involving the addition of black coffee to bacteria-laden saliva resulted in a reduction of odour causing gases by up to 90 per cent. 

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/110048/Coffee-cures-bad-breath-

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1195537/How-cup-coffee-keeps-breath-smelling-sweet.html

 Marcus " Well you never can tell can you? I thought coffee gave you a bit of bad breath, as it says in the article. I think that anti bacterial agents are the way forward with this and other gum problems for the future."

I like being a dentist

Treating the nation

A healthcare supplement in today’s Telegraphincludes an article on “rewarding careers” in healthcare, listing amongst others, dentistry as one of four professions. BDA Executive Board member Nilesh Patel is featured, describing his professional progression as a dentist and his view that if an individual is “prepared to work hard and be fully committed, [they] can have a really rewarding career.”

Marcus: " I agree with Nilesh - being a dentist is great! I don't think I would say that if I worked within the NHS but, as a private dentist, the opportunities for providing patients with wow fabulous service and with fantastic advances in technology make the day to day life at Fresh Dental Care very fulfilling.

We are looking at advances in the treatment of gum disease; Rachel, my hygienist, has been on a course recently and we are now combining a new regime of mouth washes with regular detailed cleaning and bacterial analysis to see if antibiotics are needed to properly treat this dreadful disorder."

The cost of clean dentistry

Added costs may drive NHS dentists into private practice

The Scotsmantoday reports that new standards for decontamination in Scotland may prove too costly for some NHS dentists to manage, potentially driving them to take on more private patients in order to meet the added cost. Chief dental officer Margie Taylor says the government was “looking at seeing what the options are” for approximately 140 practices in Scotland who “can’t expand,” adding, “we don’t want to put in jeopardy the services they are currently offering to their communities.” Meanwhile, BDA Scotland director Andrew Lamb expresses concern over the threat of closures urging the government to provide “the facilities and the infrastructure and the ongoing revenue costs to allow them to continue.”

http://news.scotsman.com/health/Added-costs-may-drive-NHS.5337616.jp

Marcus: "Full, no holds barred, cross infection control in dentistry is costly, we know that from experience here at Fresh Dental Care. It is what we have to do to gain and keep the confidence of our patients, so the government in Scotland will have to fund the NHS improvements."

"At Fresh Dental Care we have an 'all zones backstage pass' for our patients. Patients are welcome to visit any part of the practice and be shown the measures we take for their safety - but I think most patients take it for granted that we will look after them."

NHS Dentistry vs Private

HSJ on “toothless dental policy”

The Health Service Journal includes an opinion piece from Simon Stevens, CEO of UnitedHealth, exploring the core issues creating “”chronic confusion and dissatisfaction” over NHS dental provision. Stevens takes into account the evolution of the service since its inception in an attempt to clarify the underlying aim of NHS dental provision.  He also addresses the “mess” arising between public and private provision, and praises the “sign of bravery” demonstrated by Conservative proposals for changing the system, which, he suggests, is necessary. The piece acknowledges the “perverse incentives” inherent the 2006 contract, which he says have led dentists to “pick and choose” how much NHS work to undertake, and ultimately concludes that any measures taken in the interim to expand provision “won’t work” without tackling the incentive issue and clarifying “what NHS dentistry is trying to achieve.”

 Marcus: " As a private dentist, it is very easy to criticise the NHS. I do not know how to make the NHS dental service work properly. I am of the opinion that it is not working too well, as can be seen by the above article. The choice between NHS and private is a value choice. At Fresh Dental Care we try to balance high quality customer service and good value for money. We try and produce high quality work of the latest technological specification and of high aesthetics."

Be prepared

Policies to protect all the family

The Daily Mirror looks into the range of health cash plans available to ease the costs of ‘everyday’ health expenses, such as dental check-ups and eye care, in the midst of the credit crunch. The article explores various options for provision and makes comparison with private medical insurance cover.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/advice/money/2009/05/06/taking-a-look-at-the-best-health-policies-to-protect-all-the-family-115875-21336042/

Marcus: " I think it might be best to invest in a dental plan, as it would offset the cashflow impact of a sudden, medium dental bill. In my experience, there is no foolproof, all singing low cost plan, but I think that somthing is better than nothing in helping you to budget for private dentistry."