Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

T he NHS Commission- ing Board (NHS CB) has announces plans to help up to 100,000 more peo- ple to use the internet to im- prove their health. The Board is forming a new partnership with the Online Centres Foundation to fund existing UK Online Centres to train and support people to help their health and well- being through the internet. The funding will support the Online Centres Foundation to develop at least 50 of their ex- isting centres in public places such as libraries, community centres cafes and pubs to be- come digital health hubs. These hubs will provide training and support to help people go online for the first time so they can start using websites such as NHS Choic- es. As people become more confident they will also be en- couraged to do more online, such as provide comments on their use of the NHS or order repeat prescriptions online. To support the centres and the people who use them there will be online health informa- tion training on their website www.learnmyway.com. In addition to the health hubs, the programme will also establish a new network of larger NHS digital projects working in health locations (including hospitals and GP surgeries) to pilot innovative approaches to getting involved in online healthcare. The NHS Commissioning Board is concerned that those who experience the greatest health inequalities – and who have the greatest need of NHS services - are least likely to be online. People over the age of 65 account for more than half of NHS spending, but 36 per cent of those over the age of 65 have never been online before and half of the eight million people who have never used the internet have a disability. Homeless people, travellers and some rural communities experience health inequali- ties and poor health – but of- ten also lack access to online services. To support the centres and their users, a digital health information learning pack- age will be established on the online learning platform Learn my way, which will help evaluate the best way to en- courage people to find health and information and complete transactions online. DT Thousands encouraged to use internet to improve health T he risk of developing cancer or tissue dam- age after exposure to ionising radiation varies among people because of genetic and lifestyle factors, according the Health Protection Agency’s in- dependent Advisory Group on Ionising Radiation (AGIR). An AGIR report concludes that there is strong evidence that smoking substantially in- creases the risk of developing lung cancer after exposure to ionising radiation; an effect particularly marked in people exposed to radon gas. There is also evidence that genetic fac- tors affect the way people react to ionising radiation, although further research is needed to confirm this and identify all the genes responsible. The conclusions raise ethi- cal issues that will need careful consideration and could have implications for advice given to smokers who undergo ra- diotherapy, work with ionising radiation or are accidentally ex- posed. Professor Bryn Bridges, chairman of AGIR, said: “Smok- ing may well be important when considering future risks in ex- posed people. It is an appro- priate time to start to consider how knowledge of lifestyle fac- tors such as smoking might be incorporated into occupational, medical and public radiation protection.” DT Online to better health? Smoking increases lung cancer risk after radiation exposure Another risk from smoking A new survey from dental brand Corso- dyl has revealed that permanent tooth loss is the nation’s biggest confidence killer. Out of the adults surveyed, 51 per cent said that losing a tooth would be the worst blow to their confidence, com- pared to 19 per cent who cited changes in weight, and ten per cent bad skin. Despite these findings, 48 per cent of those surveyed said that healthy looking gums are not as important as other aspects of their oral health, and only 18 per cent said they would visit the dentist if they had gum problems. Dentist Amit Rai comment- ed: “Gum disease is preva- lent in Britain and this new report highlights what I see in my practice on a daily ba- sis - that some British adults seem to know little about the health of their gums. Although most patients nowadays understand the importance of brushing twice daily, they don’t often realise that the bugs, which cause gum disease, love to hide within the spaces in-between their teeth. A build-up of bugs causes the gums to become inflamed, commonly resulting in red, swollen gums which may bleed upon flossing or brushing. Over time gums could pull away from teeth and, if left untreated, gum disease could result in the scary reality of tooth loss. There are many products available to treat gum dis- ease. Where appropriate, I often recommend a medi- cated mouthwash, containing chlorhexidine, for short term use to treat the signs of gum disease, as well as a good oral care routine.” DT Britons fear tooth loss more than weight gain 2 News United Kingdom Edition March 25-31, 2013 A Government decision to award general dental practitioners in England an uplift to their funding of 1.5 per cent for 2013/14 will do little to relieve the increasing pressure on high street den- tists, the British Dental Asso- ciation (BDA) has warned. The Department of Health’s decision has this year been made without a recommen- dation from the Doctors’ and Dentists’ Review Body, fol- lowing its decision to suspend DDRB’s role in determining pay settlements. The Department of Health has also signalled that it in- tends to implement changes to the way that dental contracts are managed at the end of the 2013/14 financial year, al- though details of these chang- es are yet to be published. Dr John Milne, Chair of the BDA’s General Dental Practice Committee, said: “While den- tists understand the financial challenges facing the public purse that sit behind this deci- sion, they also know that their practice expenses are continu- ing to escalate and that their professional lives are becom- ing ever more challenging. “Dentistry in England is facing an uncertain time with new commissioning arrange- ments being implemented in just a few weeks and new con- tractual arrangements being piloted. “Dentists are working hard not only to care for their pa- tients today, but also to make these reforms work to build a better future. “That future will also de- pend on the funding short- falls that are being endured by practices now being recouped in future years. The BDA will continue to remind Govern- ment of this and look to the DDRB for future recommenda- tions to more effectively sup- port dentists’ hard work caring for patients. “We will also press for the all-important detail of the changes to contract man- agement that have been an- nounced alongside today’s an- nouncement to be published. Inevitably, the devil will be in the detail of these changes and we will be looking very closely at them.” Salaried dentists will re- ceive a one per cent pay uplift, in line with the award given to other NHS employees. DT Funding uplift places extra pressure on GDPs, BDA warns BDA warns of fiscal pressure