Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

A dentist from Weymouth, Dorset and his partner Danielle Wootton, a uni- versity lecturer, are walking the Two Moors Way in Devon this September in aid of the Mouth Cancer Foundation. Paul Kelly said: “We decided to do this because I have seen the consequences of mouth cancer and Danielle has had a relative die from this condition. Figures for mouth cancer are on the in- crease”. The Two Moors Way is just over 100 miles and goes over both Exmoor and Dartmoor to “neither of us are long-distance walkers but we have been train- ing hard and we are hoping that the weather remains favourable, particularly for the Dartmoor stretch. Fortunately we are doing this over eight days. We are pay- ing for all our own accommoda- tion and every penny we receive in support goes to the Mouth Cancer Foundation”. They are also working on their navigation skills as part of the route is described as ‘unway- marked’ open moorland. Fortu- nately Paul has done some navi- gation before, but he still feels the need to practice in the field with a compass and an ordnance survey map. He said: “We have read blogs of others who have done this walk and had nothing but rain day af- ter day. We hope that doesn’t hap- pen to us”. Paul said: “We are taking seri- ously the requirement to upgrade our fitness levels”. Paul used to be a keen surfer, mountain biker, and badminton player but he said that it had been too easy to let these activities slip by the way- side as years passed. Danielle used to enjoy cycling and ten- nis and she says that she is re- ally enjoying discovering a level of fitness that she thought she had lost. They have had support from a local radio station, set up for the period of the 2012 Olym- pic events in Weymouth and Portland, that has been playing recordings of an interview with Paul to raise awareness about mouth cancer. Paul stated that the aim of the walk was not only to raise funds but also to raise aware- ness in the population regard- ing mouth cancer. He will be emphasising the importance of early diagnosis, attention to risk factors, and the changing demo- graphics, with more young peo- ple being affected. DT For anyone who wishes to donate visit http://www.my- charitypage.com/paulkelly Dentist walks the Two Moors in aid of Mouth Cancer Foundation Dentist Paul Kelly A n increasing number of fe- male dentists are working for the NHS, with the gap between male and female num- bers narrowing, a new Health and Social Care Information Cen- tre (HSCIC) report shows. Of the almost 23,000 high street dentists who performed NHS activity in 2011/12; 44.5 per cent were female. This is up from 43.5 per cent on the previ- ous year and from 38.8 per cent in 2006/07. There has been a gradual in- crease in the number of female dentists making up the under-35 age group; which is now 55.4 per cent compared to 55.2 per cent in the previous year and 51.8 per cent in 2006/07. The report; NHS Dental Statis- tics for England: 2011/12 brings together information on different aspects of NHS dentistry in Eng- land, from the number of den- tists working for the NHS and the amount of activity they perform, to the number of patients seen by an NHS dentist. Key facts include: cent of the population, includ- ing children and adults) were seen by an NHS dentist in the 24 months to June 2012; a 0.4 mil- lion increase on the 24 months population) and a 1.4 million in- crease on the 24 months to March 2006, immediately prior to the in- troduction of the current dental contract when 55.8 per cent of the population were seen by an NHS dentist 70.7 per cent of children, were seen by an NHS dentist in the 24 months to June 2012; 0.4 percent- 24 months to June 2011 when 70.4 per cent of children saw a dentist but the same number and percentage of children as in the 24 months to March 2006 - ment performed on the NHS in- 2011/12. This number has been increasing each year since the courses of treatment measure was first introduced in 2006/07 HSCIC chief executive Tim Straughan said: “Today’s fig- ures show that more females are working for the NHS as high street dentists, with the under 35’s age group in particu- lar made up of more women than men. “Today’s figures come hot on the heels of two more HSCIC re- ports that show dentists’ working hours have gradually increased. Primary care dentists have also seen a drop in their taxable in- come. Together, these dentistry reports offer a broad picture of what is happening within the dental profession and its patients.” DT Rise in young female dentists work- ing for the NHS, says new report T his September, The British Dental Asso- ciation and Colgate are partnering to raise awareness of oral health as part of over- all health. Colgate Oral Health Month, now in its 10th year, aims to inform and educate the general public on the im- portance of good oral health, and to encourage communi- cation between dental pro- fessionals and patients. The theme for the 2012 campaign is ‘Oral Health as Part of Over- all Health’ with the following messages: with fluoride toothpaste drinks between meals To help raise awareness and engage with the entire population, Colgate is run- ning a national radio advertis- ing campaign, focusing on the - ditionally Colgate is hosting a page during the month of September inviting the gen- eral public to have their oral care questions answered by a dentist. Dental professional par- ticipation is key to the suc- cess of this campaign. Colgate will provide all registered practices with Colgate Oral Health Month practice packs containing educational materials to help your team create a practice display. Col- gate Oral Health Month is an opportunity to reinforce the benefits of improving oral health as part of a national campaign, and your entire dental team can play a key role, as part of your on-going delivery of care. Health Month road show will provide oral health infor- mation to the general pub- lic throughout the month of Croydon, Cardiff, Kingston, - mingham, Liverpool, Man- chester, Sheffield, Leeds, Newcastle and Glasgow. Den- tal hygienists and therapists will provide oral care ad- vice and raise awareness of oral health as part of overall health. If you’re interested in attending one of the road shows, full details of the ven- ues can be found at www.col- gateprofessional.co.uk. Colgate will provide a veri- fiable CPD Programme for all dental professionals: Deliver- - This will be available to download from 1st September at www.colgateprofessional. co.uk For further information please contact the Colgate Oral Health Month registra- tion line on 0161 665 5881. DT September is Colgate Oral Health Month 2 News United Kingdom Edition