NOTICE BOARD


and restricting their practice appropriately. MDDUS is very experienced in helping


doctors with health problems that impact upon their fitness to practise. Whilst the GMC’s guidance does not expressly advise doctors to consult their medical defence organisation, MDDUS strongly advises members to seek our advice before contacting the GMC. Help is also at hand for dentists


suffering from health problems. The Dentists’ Health Support Programme offers support to practitioners with alcohol and other addictive illnesses, while the British Doctors’ and Dentists’ Group, formed in 1975, is a mutual support society for doctors and dentists who need help with drug or alcohol problems.


ADAM conference to feature mock disciplinary hearing


DELEGATES attending the 2012 ADAM (Association of Dental Administrators and Managers) conference can take part in a live dramatisation of a mock disciplinary hearing, featuring an alleged case of breached patient confidentiality and misuse of Facebook. Produced by MDDUS staff, this interactive workshop will allow participants to air views and make a judgement before hearing the outcome.


MDDUS is the main sponsor of this


year’s ADAM conference to be held on May 18 and 19 at the Majestic Hotel in Harrogate. Among the speakers are Denplan's Roger Matthews, business planning expert Andy McDougall from Spot On Business Planning and Jann Gardner, specialist in healthcare delivery and service management. Delegates can also attend workshops on building an effective team, assertiveness skills, understanding the role of treatment coordinator, and dealing with bullying and harassment. Go to www.adam-aspire.co.uk for further details and an application form.


Update your website to ensure GDC compliance NEW GDC guidance on ethical advertising which came into effect in March has some very detailed requirements on how dental practices promote their services. Among new conditions set out in


the facts JUST


Principles of Ethical Advertisingis a checklist of information that must be displayed on practice websites. All dental professionals providing care mentioned on the site must give their GDC number, their professional qualification and the country where it was attained as in accordance with European guidance. In addition, dental practice websites must display:


• the name and geographic address at which the dental service is established • contact details of the dental service, including e-mail address and telephone number


• the GDC’s address and other contact details, or a link to the GDC website • details of the practice’s complaints procedure and information of who patients may contact if they are not satisfied with the response (namely the relevant NHS body for NHS treatment and the Dental Complaints Service for private treatment)


• the date the website was last updated.


This information must be updated regularly. The guidance also states: “A dental practice website must not display information comparing the skills or qualifications of any dental professional providing any service with the skills and qualifications of other dental professionals.” In addition, the guidance addresses practice advertising, stating that dentists must ensure that any information uses clear language that patients can understand and all claims are backed up by facts. It also says that practices should “avoid statements or claims intended or likely to create an unjustified expectation about the results you can achieve.” In regard to specialist titles the guidance states: “Only dentists who are on a GDC specialist list may use the title ‘specialist’ or describe themselves as a ‘specialist in…’ Dentists who are not on a GDC specialist list should not use titles which may imply specialist status, such as orthodontist, periodontist, endodontist etc. “Registrants who are not on a specialist list should not describe themselves as ‘specialising in…’ a particular form of treatment but may use the terms ‘special interest in…’, ‘experienced in…’ or ‘practice limited to…’” The guidance further adds that no specialist lists exist for dental care professionals, and DCPs should avoid misleading patients by using titles such as ‘smile specialist’ or ‘denture specialist’. The GDC makes clear that the onus is on dental professionals to be honest in their presentation of skills and qualifications. It states: “If you make misleading claims, you may have to justify your decisions to the GDC through our fitness to practise procedures.”


a more personalised service. Contact our membership department on 0845 270 2038 or


at membership@mddus.com l BROWSE MDDUS CASE STUDIES ONLINE Over 100 MDDUS medical and dental case


SPRING 2012


studies drawn from our case files and covering a broad range of topics can now be browsed in the Resource Library at www.mddus.com. Cases are organised by topic area and have been anonymised to protect confidentiality.


l LONDON ‘HOT TOPICS’ Places are still available on MDDUS Hot Topic workshops being held in our London office in Pemberton Row. Topics include managing team conflict, confidentiality and data protection, problem solving and


decision making, and leadership and developing your team. For more information go to the Hot topics web page at www.mddus.com or contact Ann Fitzpatrick at afitzpatrick@mddus.com or 0845 270 2034.


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