From Volume 42, Issue 6, July 2015 | Pages 574-579
This article is about the publication by the General Dental Council in 2013 of the Standards expected of those members of the dental team who are registered with the Council, on each of their Registers, and discusses the implications of the new Standards for dental professionals.
The General Dental Council (GDC) is the statutory regulator of dental professionals for the United Kingdom, established under the Dentists Act 1984.1 The GDC regulates Dentists and Dental Care Professionals (DCPs), including clinical dental technicians, dental hygienists and therapists, dental nurses, dental technicians and orthodontic therapists. By law, all of the above must be registered with the General Dental Council to work in the United Kingdom. This ensures only appropriately qualified and skilled dental professionals are part of the clinical dental team.
The main objective of the General Dental Council is the protection of patients and the public. It maintains registers for the above noted dental professionals. The GDC's powers and duties also include setting the standards of conduct, performance and behaviour that Registrants are expected to adhere to, as well as investigating any complaints which suggest a Registrant's fitness to practise may be impaired.
The GDC also sets standards for the education and training of dental professionals and requires all Registrants to undertake Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in order to ensure that they keep their skills and knowledge up-to-date and remain fit to practise. This allows the GDC to meet its main objective.
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