The General Dental Council (GDC) has published data about the working patterns of dental care professionals (DCPs) in the UK.

This follows the dentists’ working pattern data released in March 2024 and is part of the regulator’s commitment to supporting the sector to understand the workforce challenges better and illuminate the public debate on the dental workforce.

The GDC worked with stakeholders to understand the workforce information that would be of value to them. As a result of the feedback, the council asked a small number of additional voluntary questions as part of the DCP annual renewal process.

Almost 44,000 DCPs responded to the working patterns questions, and the data includes information on the proportion of DCPs who are providing NHS care and private care, whether they are working in clinical or non-clinical roles, and how many hours they are working.

The data shows that of the responding DCPs:

  • The majority (86 per cent) were doing some clinical work (fully clinical 47 per cent, predominantly clinical 18 per cent, mix of clinical and non-clinical 22 per cent)
  • Four-fifths (80 per cent) were employed, and 14 per cent were self-employed
  • The vast majority (94 per cent) reported working less than 40 hours per week, with 48 per cent working between 30 and 40 hours and 46 per cent working 30 hours or less
  • Just over a third (35 per cent) said they delivered a “mix of NHS and private care”, a quarter (25 per cent) said they were “fully private”, and one in seven (15 per cent) said they were ‘fully NHS’.
  • Nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) stated their dental setting was “general dental practice”
  • More than three-quarters (77 per cent) reported having one place of work

Stefan Czerniawski, executive director of strategy, said, “We now know more about the working patterns of dental professionals than ever before. For the first time, there is now a rich picture of where dental professionals work, the balance between private and NHS practice, and the balance between clinical and non-clinical roles and activities, across the four nations of the UK.

“I would like to thank all the DCPs whose data allowed us to build up this picture, and all the organisations who encouraged participation. This additional data provides a firm foundation for better understanding how dental professionals are working across the UK. We are confident that these insights will support strategic planning and decision-making by health services, governments and dental providers, ultimately helping patients receive the care they need.”

The GDC believes that having a better understanding of how dental professionals are working throughout the UK will provide important insight into some of the issues that affect access to dental services for patients.

The working pattern insights vary significantly by profession title and can be viewed on the GDC website.

Author: