The new Care Quality Commission Standards

The Care Quality Commission has published its proposed new Fundamental Standards. Are they a ‘new start’ or more of the same?

Tooth Whitening Information Group

One year ago, the Tooth Whitening Information Group was formed to address the urgent need to look into the practice of illegal tooth whitening. Karen Coates discusses the latest aims of the group and what impact it will make on the procedure

Xylitol: the healthy sugar

Xylitol can be used to prevent many oral and respiratory diseases. It is now incorporated into a wide range of products, giving the professional and patient many different options

Cardio-pulmonary resuscitation in practice

CPR is an essential skill for all health care professionals and regular training is a GDC requirement. These skills should be updated as part of medical emergencies scenario training

Make email your servant, not your master

If allowed to, emails will become time thieves. Become the master of your emails by following these useful tips to stop your inbox from overflowing with unwanted messages

Interdental cleaning in rheumatoid arthritis

Evidence links the presence of periodontal disease to the development of rheumatoid arthritis. Interdental cleaning is necessary to reduce the risk of gum disease and cleaning aids can make this easier for people with physical impairments

Reducing the impact of ageing on dental health

Older people are more likely than previous generations to have their natural teeth and are less willing to accept dentures. Dental care professionals need to consider a number of factors that affect the dental health of older people, and employ preventive measures

An introduction to air polishing and its benefits

Air polishing is more comfortable and quicker to use than traditional scale and polish cleaning methods, and is suitable for a range of patients. Offering this service could also be an effective way of promoting your practice

Sugar-free gum and dental caries: a high-impact approach

Dental caries remain a major public health problem. However, research has demonstrated that minimal intervention and management approaches can make a dramatic impact in preventing dental caries. Among the most impactful tools in this new approach is sugar-free chewing gum

The selection and use of loupes in dentistry

Loupes allow dentists, hygienists and therapists to see their working area in more detail than normal vision allows. There are several types of loupe, and a number of issues need to be considered when deciding which model to use

Dental attendance in pre-school children

Bullying in the workplace: what it is and how to cope with it

Bullying at work damages the health and wellbeing of affected staff and represents a huge financial cost to the NHS. Dealing with it is easier said than done, but there are steps people can take to help them cope

Medical emergencies in dentistry: assessing pupils

The Resuscitation Council (UK) recommends the ‘ABCDE’ approach to assess the acutely ill patient. A key component of ‘D’ is assessment of pupils because changes in their size, equality and reactivity can provide important diagnostic information in the critically ill patient

Dental lasers: principles and practice of safety

Lasers have great potential to improve treatment and are being increasingly used in dentistry. Patients, practice staff and visitors need to be protected from their potentially harmful effects on the skin and eyes, so dental staff need to understand and apply safety principles

Social media use by employees

There has been a big increase in the use of social media recently. While a lot of employees have their own social media profiles, many dental practices are now seeing the benefits of using social media to promote their business