Update from the Chief Dental Officer – 23.09.2020
Dear Colleague,
Following yesterday’s announcements by the Prime Minister I would like to confirm the current intent and approach to maintaining dental care services in England:
- Practices should continue to restore activity in line with letters and SOPs currently in force.
- The current Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Primary Care Dentistry – Transition to Recovery SOP (28 Aug 2020) continues to apply and the version of 28 August contains updates to reflect some changes to support management of the second wave.
- Practices should remain open for the delivery of face to face care, whilst triaging patients remotely in advance, and using remote consultations where appropriate. There remains a need to focus on ensuring face to face urgent and emergency care is available, reviewing interrupted patient care pathways and restarting where appropriate, and patients who normally attend the practice are prioritised for care in terms of their risk.
- In the event of a local outbreak clearly local direction and decisions will take precedence. Please review your practice contingency plans in preparation for your practice’s response to any local lockdown direction, guidance from Public Health England or advice from NHS England and NHS Improvement.
Further updates will be published by NHS England and NHS Improvement in conjunction with your local team.
Please continue to be vigilant and maintain communication with your local dental network chair for advice and guidance on any changes in local restrictions and public health measures.
Thank you again for your continuing support,
