Consultation to reflect dental needs
by Guy Hiscott
Health Minister, Michael McGimpsey, has launched a consultation on Minimum Standards for Dental Care and Treatment in Northern Ireland.
The standards focus on local dental services and describe what patients can expect as a result of using them.
The Minister said: ‘These standards aim to ensure that patients receive consistently high quality care and treatment from Northern Ireland dental services.’
The standards are targeted at patients, the profession and regulators, attempting to address individuality of care, and the dignity that expectation brings, when visiting a dentist in Northern Ireland.
The standards cover both health service and private dental care.
With almost one million courses of dental treatment undertaken per year, the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (DHSSPS) believes it is important that the standards are presented in a format and language that are readily understood by patients, yet are still relevant to the profession and regulators
The consultation document and response pro-forma is available at the DHSSPS website at www.dhsspsni.gov.uk. Responses should be received by 19 February 2010.
