Community Dental Services CIC

MP for Bedford visits Dental Care Centre

Mohammad Yasin, MP for Bedford and Kempston has paid a visit to the Dental Care Centre (DCC), located in his constituency, and met with representatives from Community Dental Services CIC (CDS).

Mr Yasin was met at the DCC by CDS Chief Executive, Helen Paisley and Chief Operating Officer, Glen Taylor, for a tour of the clinics and the Training Centre which CDS is opening soon to provide training for the whole dental team. He also had the chance to talk to the clinical teams working at the DCC and to view one of the CDS mobile dental fleet. During the visit, he heard about the work CDS has done to bring preventative care to local under 5s who had not previously seen a dentist.

Mr Yasin said “Dental services are in crisis, so it was a pleasure to see the work of CDS providing high quality community dental services to the NHS for patients for those with specialist needs including children with extensive untreated tooth decay and adults with complex needs, including care home residents.

“The commitment to put patients first was plain to see and CDS provide a vital service to the oral health of the most vulnerable in our community.

“More widely, we need to reform the NHS dentistry contract so that everyone who needs an NHS dentist can get one.”

Helen Paisley said: “We were delighted to have the opportunity to welcome Mohammad to our Dental Care Centre to share how we support our special care and paediatric patients and the measures we take to help them undergo successful treatments. In addition, the continued ethos of CDS is to upskill the whole dental team through education utilising the Learning Academy, which the new Training Centre is the central hub to delivering that education. This will be opening soon to support dentists and nurses throughout their careers.”

CDS’s patients typically have complex additional needs such as learning disabilities, severe autism, mental health issues, or are in situations that traditional dental care cannot reach for example due to homelessness. They may be very anxious children, with high levels of dental need, unable to tolerate treatment in a regular dental practice.

Community Dental Services hosts Association of Dental Groups representatives

Community dental provider and ADG member, Community Dental Services CIC (CDS), recently welcomed representatives from the Association of Dental Groups (ADG) to the Dental Care Centre, Bedford. This was an opportunity to highlight special care and paediatric dentistry to dental group leaders from across the country. Community dental services treat patients with a range of complex needs based on referrals from dentists and other health professionals. Typically, patients have autism or ADHD, learning disabilities, complex mental health issues or severe dental anxiety, meaning treatment in general dental practice can be very difficult. Children with high levels of dental decay are also referred.  

Neil Carmichael, ADG Chair and Dr Sandra White, ADG Clinical Director, visited CDS’s Bedford clinic to hear more about how this patient group are treated.   

Helen Paisley, CDS CEO and ADG Director, said: “It was a pleasure to host the ADG leadership team and to share the work we do. The ADG are at the forefront of campaigning for improvements to dental access in the UK and it was really good to have the opportunity to talk about our patients and how the current crisis in the sector impacts on them.”  

Neil Carmichael, Chair of the ADG, added: “The ADG staff team had a fabulous day at the Dental Care Centre, Bedford; meeting such a dedicated and capable dental team which was also well equipped to provide support for virtually every condition was a highlight. We also achieved a huge amount during the away day. Thank you!”

New service launched in Nottingham to improve oral health

Nottingham City Council is working with Community Dental Services CIC (CDS) to launch a new oral health improvement service. The Nottingham City Oral Health Improvement Team will focus on improving oral health and reducing health inequalities across the city.

Maintaining good oral health has a significant impact on overall health and quality of life, while poor oral health means people often cannot participate fully in society due to pain, poor nutrition and loss of confidence. In England, tooth decay is still the most common reason for hospital admission in children aged between six and ten years. However, it can impact on individuals of all ages.

The team will deliver the oral health programmes, based on local need, working with partners to target where they can have the greatest impact, including:

  • Supervised tooth brushing programmes in schools and early years settings;
  • Delivering training to health / non health professionals for both child related and vulnerable adult / older people services;
  • Supporting care homes to implement NICE and CQC guidelines;
  • Distributing Oral Health resources.

Helen Paisley, Chief Executive, is delighted at the opportunity to deliver a new oral health improvement service for Nottingham City: “Maintaining good oral health is so important to overall health and wellbeing and quality of life. We are really looking forward to promoting positive oral health messages directly to children through supervised toothbrushing and to people working in care who support groups such as vulnerable elderly in care homes and people with complex needs. The opportunity to work in Nottingham City compliments the work of our Nottinghamshire County oral health team and our Nottinghamshire clinical community dental service teams and will really allow us to reach right into the heart of communities across Nottingham. 

“Our oral health teams have great experience in building partnerships and working through established networks to make lasting improvements in oral health where it is needed most, and we are really looking forward to working here in Nottingham.”

Councillor Linda Woodings, Portfolio Holder for Adult Social Care and Health at Nottingham City Council, said: “The health of our teeth is important for all of us as it affects what we eat, how we communicate, our self-confidence and can support older people to stay independent for longer. Tooth decay and poor oral health remain a serious issue and one that is not distributed evenly across society. It can have a negative impact throughout life including missed days at school or work.

“Taking preventative action to reduce the risks of decay is really important and this new service will play a significant role in protecting and promoting good oral health amongst Nottingham City residents.”

To find out more about the service or to book supervised toothbrushing programmes for your setting, visit: https://www.communitydentalservices.co.uk/oral-health-improvement/ nottinghamshire-oral-health-page/nottingham-city

Children benefit from toothbrushing packs and oral health education during National Smile Month

Community Dental Services CIC, along with East Suffolk Community Partnerships and Lowestoft Rising, are raising awareness around oral health amongst children in years one, two and six. 

 

In response to growing concerns over the number of children in the area requiring general anaesthetic appointments for dental treatment, CDS is reinforcing the key oral health messages to establish prevention rather than cure.  

 

600 toothbrushing packs will be distributed to primary school children, scout groups and food banks in Beccles, Bungay, Halesworth, with an additional 1,500 packs for years one and two children in Lowestoft. 


Whilst many children in Suffolk have healthy teeth compared to the national average, there are some areas where tooth decay is still very high.  According to the 2019 National Dental Epidemiology Programme for England Oral Health Survey, overall, 23.4% of five-year-old children in England had experience of obvious dental decay. Tooth decay is a serious health issue with recent figures revealing that 43,000 children and young people had been admitted to hospital to have teeth that are unable to be saved removed under general anaesthetic. This is the single highest reason for a child to be admitted to hospital for treatment under general anaesthetic. Tooth decay can significantly impact children’s oral and general health, affecting their confidence, wellbeing and ability to take part in everyday activities such as attending nurseries and schools, yet it is preventable.

 

Cllr Mary Rudd, East Suffolk’s cabinet member for Community Health, said: “It’s really gratifying to see such a beneficial resource being provided for the community through the distribution of these oral health packs. The project is designed to help encourage young people to develop and maintain good oral hygiene habits, while also thinking about their dietary choices.” 

 

“We’ve heard from local food banks that oral hygiene is one of the things affected by the current cost of living pressures, so I hope this project can help ensure families receive the right tools and information. It’s particularly important at a time when many people have struggled to access dental care following the pandemic. Where a short survey has been sent out in conjunction with the packs, we’ll be considering any feedback received from families and school staff.” 

 

Amanda Turner, Oral Health Improvement Manager at CDS said: “CDS is the only oral health education provider commissioned by NHS England, alongside East Suffolk Council in the Waveney area and Norfolk County Council, to deliver our Healthy Smiles accreditation programme to schools in Norfolk and Waveney. We are an organisation that supports the community and we are looking at reducing the inequalities in oral health. By providing Oral Health input, the project ensures the right message and education is given. In the packs received by year six children, we have also provided an evaluation piece of work produced for the teachers and pupils themselves. Our Healthy Smiles Award is a programme that is proven to work, instilling good oral health habits in young children that last a lifetime.” 

Local supermarket, Morrisons has supported the free toothbrushing pack for the project work in Lowestoft, which contains a tube of toothpaste, toothbrush, timer and information sheet from CDS.


CDS’s Healthy Smiles Award combines oral health improvement to raise awareness of how to care for teeth and combined with supervised toothbrushing sessions in the classroom. 

 

Please contact ohp.norfolk@cds-cic.co.uk for more information.