Winter 2013/Spring 2014 - The Medical History form

A lot of our patients do not like to fill in the Medical History form that we give you before you see the dentist, so we thought we would outline the reasons we have to ask the questions:

• It is very important for us to know if you are taking any medication of any description. If we were to administer something to you e.g. injections, medication, etc. that interacts with tablets you are taking, this could have very serious consequences
• We ask our female patients if they are taking the contraceptive pill as antibiotics can reverse the effect of the pill so we need to advise you to use alternative precautions. Also if you are pregnant we wouldn’t want to be taking x-rays or giving medication that puts the health of an unborn baby at risk
• The questions regarding infectious diseases are for our safety as well as your own
• The question regarding cold sores is so that we can ask you that if you have an active cold sore at the time of your appointment, we would like you to cancel and rebook your appointment when the cold sore has gone. The virus that causes cold sores (herpes simplex 1) can cause blindness, so we don’t want to use the water spray etc. that might spread the virus to your eyes or ours
• If you have angina, asthma, diabetes, epilepsy or a heart condition etc. and you have an attack whilst on the premises, it is easy for us to see what the problem might be from what you have told us on your form. This leaves us better advised on how to treat you (all staff are trained in medical emergencies) and also for us to inform the emergency services
• If you smoke, drink alcohol or both, it increases your risk of periodontitis or oral cancer. We need to know how high of a risk you carry and to report any changes in your mouth tissue to hospital as soon as possible

The Medical History form has to be checked and signed at EVERY visit, and is kept confidential.

We hope this enlightens you as to the reasons we have to ask these questions, we are not just being nosey. If you have any queries please ask a member of staff

Summer 2013 - Data Protection

In order to provide you with a high standard of dental care and attention, we need to hold personal information about you. This includes:

• Personal details e.g. your past and current dental and medical condition, age, NHS number, address, telephone number and your doctor
• Information about the treatment we have provided and its cost
• Radiographs and study models
• Records of consent to treatment
• Any correspondence relating to you with other health care professionals e.g. hospital

We need to keep comprehensive and accurate personal data in order to provide you with safe and appropriate dental care. We will retain your dental records whilst you are a patient at this practice and after you cease to be a patient, for at least 11 years or, for children, until the age of 25, whichever is the longer. Personal data about you is held in the practices’ computer system and in a manual filing system. The information is not accessible to the public and only authorised members of staff have access to it.

In order to provide proper and safe dental care, we may need to disclose personal information about you to:

• Your doctor
• The hospital or community dental service
• Private dental schemes of which you are a member

If you have any queries about any information we hold about you please ask a member of staff.

October 2012 - The CQC Visit

In October 2012 we had a visit from a CQC inspector (Care Quality Commission). The CQC is an independent health regulator of health and adult services in England. They assess Quality and Safety in the working practice. The inspector checks that all our policies, procedures and dental records are up to date. She checked our decontamination room and that we did all the sterilising to the highest of standards. A few of our patients received a phone call to see how they felt about the practice and the staff. We are very pleased to report that we passed our visit. The report is available to view on www.cqc.org.uk

January 2012 - We introduced a patient survey form (available in the waiting room) which we would be grateful if you could complete. This is for us to find out if patients are happy or not with the service, staff and surroundings here at Avenue Parade. Please complete a questionnaire, in confidence, and place it in the suggestion box.

Summer 2011 - We had the new Decontamination Room fitted out which meant the relocation of the X ray equipment to downstairs. Due to the new CQC (Care Quality Commission) regulations, new rules were brought in regarding the fittings of the sterilising room. All the floors and worktops had to be fitted to specifications and we are very happy with the results. If anyone has an interest in seeing our new room please ask and a member of staff would happily show you round. Regarding our sterilisation policy, we use, wherever possible, single use (disposable) instruments. Instruments that cannot be disposed of are removed from the surgery straight after use, and taken to the sterilising room. They are then cleaned, inspected and sterilised in our autoclave in accordance with government guidelines.

May 2011 - We attended the BDA Conference in Manchester. Gail, one of our Dental nurses, entered a competition and won the TV that is now situated in the waiting room! We would be grateful for your feedback regarding the TV as we know it’s not everyone’s ‘cup of tea’. If you would like the TV turned on/off or to a different channel, please ring the bell for reception and we would be happy to oblige. Gail also won a years supply of chewing gum, we have PLENTY. If you would like some please help yourself in the office.

December 2010 - saw the fitting of our stair lift. Many of our patients have found it invaluable over the last 12 months and it has been a real asset to the Practice. Some patients have difficulty in descending or ascending the stairs and some had to have a home visit from the dentist due to being unable to access the surgery. If you require use of the stair lift, please press the button on the outside of the building to the left of the front door. A member of staff will then bring the lift down for you.

Gillian, Jan, Susan and Gail would like to thank you for taking time to read our newsletter. If you have any questions or information you would like to add to our next newsletter please feel free to add it to a suggestion slip.