Dental

Hospital Dental Service

Dental services in Scotland are provided in various settings and include the General Dental Service (High street dentists), the Community Dental Service and the NHS Hospital Dental Service (secondary care). This secondary care service accepts patients on referral from medical and dental practitioners. Consultants in other areas/specialties, including Emergency Dental Services, also make referrals. Through the Hospital Dental Service, patients can be treated in either an outpatient clinic, or depending on what treatment they require, can be admitted as either an inpatient or a day case. Hospital dental service activity occurs not only in the 2 dental hospitals (Glasgow and Dundee), and the 1 dental institute (Edinburgh), but also in many general hospitals across Scotland. There are no in-patient beds in the dental hospitals/institute and therefore all inpatient activity occurs in the general hospitals.

With the introduction of the new Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (C13) specialty, significant shortfalls have arisen in SMR00 and SMR01 data for existing dental specialties in five NHS Board areas (Ayrshire & Arran, Borders, Dumfries & Galloway, Lothian and Lanarkshire). ISDs assessment is that this is due to the misinterpretation of the new Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Code (OMFS), which was introduced during 2007.

Key Points

Approximately 1 in 18 new attendances to an outpatient clinic are to a dental specialty. For inpatients and daycases combined, approximately 1 in 72 hospital discharges are from a dental specialty.
The single most common reason for a planned (elective) hospital admission to a dental specialty is extraction of multiple teeth. This procedure accounts for 42% of all elective admissions where a procedure took place.
61% of 'Extraction of Multiple teeth' procedures that were carried out in a dental specialty were patients who reside in SIMD 1 and 2 (most deprived).