Duties are to provide dental care for adults with disabilities, medical and mental health problems as well as severe dental phobia. This will include domiciliary care and a responsibility for supervising dental students on clinic placements as part of the supervision team.
The Dental Officer (DO) is clinically accountable to the Head of Special Care Dentistry and will have a Specialist dentist in Special Care as their line manager. There are no budget or direct line management responsibilities with this post.
Be Part of Our Team...
Birmingham Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (BCHC) has more than 5000 staff working across Birmingham and the West Midlands in a wide range of community nursing and specialist healthcare roles. BCHC delivers over 100 clinical services, in people's homes, health centres, clinics and inpatient facilities. We deliver a wide range of services for children, young people, parents and families as well as adults and community services, two community hospitals, services for people with learning disabilities, the internationally recognised West Midlands Rehabilitation Centre and one of Europe’s leading Dental Hospitals and School of Dentistry. We deliver all of this with a commitment to integrated, personalised care that is rooted in our local communities. We have an ambition to deliver outstanding, integrated care as one of the key NHS providers in the West Midlands.
If you want to ‘Be Part of Our Team’ and work with a Foundation Trust which is continuously striving for better care and healthier communities, we want to hear from you.
The DO will work at the level appropriate to their competence and qualifications as a team member within the consultant led Special Care Dental (SCD) Care Pathway. They will work in close partnership with SCD specialists, dental therapist and dental nurses and members of the clinical and administration team.
The DO will assess referrals from GDPs and all other referrers according to the acceptance criteria of the specialised SCD service, liaising with the triage team and GDPs and health and social care professionals as necessary. The DO will communicate the outcome of assessment and treatment to referrers including arrangements for continuing care according to the needs of the patient and the service discharge criteria.
The DO will arrange dental treatment fully utilising the available skill mix including the role of DCPs and DNs with extended skills.
The DO will provide treatment and care to the highest standards of quality in contemporary Special Care Dentistry. This includes the responsibility for mandatory and essential to role training, Continuing Professional Developments (CPD), meeting GDC requirements and annual retention on the register, and keeping up to date with current guidelines and developments in clinical practice.
Treatment is to be undertaken at fixed clinics located within the Birmingham and Black Country, together with any related domiciliary care, as determined by team job planning as directed by the Head of Special Care Dentistry.
The DO will liaise with other health professionals as necessary and/or carers to resolve patient management issues.
The DO will provide anxiety management such as behavioural management, cognitive behavioural therapy, and treatment under inhalation and intravenous sedation as appropriate, evidenced by their level of experience and training and ability to work as an independent accredited provider of conscious sedation.
The DO will fully participate in quality improvement projects such as clinical audit, peer review, patient safety procedures, incident reporting, patient feedback and all other clinical governance requirements
The DO may be required to supervise undergraduate dental school students BDS and DT/DH students, and dentists in training (DCTs) as well as dental therapists, hygienists and nurses in accordance with the Ancillary Dental Workers Regulations (1968) and subsequent amendments.
The DO is accountable for registering their clinical activity using R4, record keeping, electronic patient management systems (REGO, RiO), working with service administrators to manage their appointment book and the booking process to make maximum use of their clinical time and activity.
The DO is responsible for their part in the compliance of the Special Care Dental Service with contracted service specifications, requirements of the BCHC trust including mandatory training, the CQC, the GDC, the Resuscitation Council and all other relevant statutory bodies.
The DO will maintain oversight of the day-to-day organisation and management of the dental premises at which the dentist works, with particular reference to the maintenance of proper clinical standards, including control of infection procedures, equipment checks and compliance with all SOPs, operational policies and procedures.
The DO is responsible for reflecting on and identifying their continuing education / training needs including relevant IT training needs and bringing this to the appraisal and personal development planning process so that it can be agreed according to the needs of the individual and of the service.
The DO will participate in undergraduate dental student supervision as part of the supervision team when they are on community clinic placements.
The DO is expected to actively engage with and contribute to the planning of service developments, business planning and organisational change.
The DO will undertake other duties appropriate to the grade including special projects, in agreement with their line manager. The Dental Officer will be expected to work flexibly across the Community Dental Service in response to demand and capacity and modified commissioner requirements. The DO will work alongside senior officers to provide specialised dental care.
To undertake other duties commensurate with this grade of post in agreement with the relevant line manager.
To minimise the Trust’s environmental impact wherever possible, including recycling, switching off lights, computers, monitors and equipment when not in use. Helping to reduce paper waste by minimising printing/copying and reducing water usage, reporting faults and heating/cooling concerns promptly and minimising travel. Where the role includes the ordering and use of supplies or equipment the post holder will consider the environmental and economic impact of purchases.
