help please......can a

I think it depends on the dentists preference really?
The dentist I work with will not work without me there, EXCEPT when I'm developing an x-ray of course. If treatment needs to be done he will not lift a finger until I come back....literally won't even get anything out of the draw until I'm there again...! It does drive me a little bonkers but that's the way he likes to work so I have to go with it.
Receptionists should definitely not be in the surgery - no way. 1. They are not qualified, 2. They mostly don't have any idea at all about anything in the surgery (unless of course they have been a nurse previously!), 3. They are not insured, 4. They are not registered and 5. Us nurses don't work hard to get our qualification to then throw a receptionist in...!!
If the dentist was happy to continue on their own doing RA then fine, but they should have either done the treatment on their own or called the patient back for another appt...!

Hi there

I have to agree with shazza a non registered employee should not be helping in the surgery.
Also in a previous reply there was comment on a dentist being the main provider in an emergency, I am assuming this was a medical emergency and not treatment, I have to say I don't agree that it should be assumed because they are the dentist they are always correct or most competent. In our hospital we are all taught BLS and some immediate life support But we are told that whoever is confident to action can lead its not to be waited on a dentist we have had several emergencies in which nurses lead, not for any other reason that we reacted to it first so we saw it through, occasionally we have very young clinicians and they maybe aren't as confident just out of uni I won't wait for them to take the lead I will take it and we will work together in keeping with out training, only our medically trained Max fax clinicians will have more advanced training which they need to lead as its beyond dental nurses training unless they've had more advanced training. Sorry for the long reply !!

If a receptionist isn't gdc registered or on a suitable training course then she really shouldn't be working in the surgery. Otherwise what's the point in registration??
Dentists are supposed to be chaperoned but if you read " standards" this is more for medical emergency reasons than anything else.
I think a dentist is on dodgy ground working with an unregistered " nurse"

If your really unsure, and there is no-one at work you can talk to,

you can ring the GDC for advice, or Public Concern at work

www.gdc-uk.org/Dentalprofessionals/Stand...ents/RaisingConcerns [1].pdf


it is all completely anonymous and you wont be in any trouble. Hope this helps!

I don't understand what the problem is with the dentist working alone. At dental school they're taught how to work alone, they handle the medical side of the emergency treatment, so really the receptionist can have a role in emergency treatment when the DN isnt there.

Doctors work alone, nurses work alone, why not dentists?

Hi, no there are two dentists and two nurses, and one nurse was called away, the other was busy in her surgery with patients...no the receptiinist isnt a nurse, has never had nurse training or had innoculations

Hi there

Is there only one nurse? Doesn't sound like a very good situation to be in. We aren't allowed to leave our dentists for a long period and never in a surgery we phone through if we need anything.
Its so we are a witness and chaperone to clinician and patient and if there is a medical emergency the clinician isn't alone.
I wouldn't really be happy with our clinicians doing cons on patients with no nurse. Is the receptionist a nurse also?

Hi thanks for you reply....so what happened was the nurse was called away for family emergency, dentist had 4 pts left exams only but drcided to carry on, then decided one of pts needed a filling but instead of asking pt to come back she decided to numb him to be seen after anothet pt, she then asked the receptionist to nurse

Hello,

What is your worry about the dentist doing something on their own?

Let us say, the dentist is fitting some dentures. The nurse goes out of the room to develop some xrays. Is that a danger of some kind, do you think?

Or is it the fact that the nurse isn't there , in the house, to 'run in to rescue' if something needs to be done , more than the actual examination?(For example, getting articulating paper out or so?)

It is easier if the nurse is there when doing an examination, as the charting is done 'live', not from memory but if the nurse is late one morning, I cannot see any major problems with that.
If the nurse often/always comes late, well, then it is a separate problem.

The dentist might want to have a nurse in the room all the time, which is understandable but I can't see that it is unlawful to not.

Im just wanting to know if a dentist is allowed to carry out an examination on a patient if they dont have a nurse, for example if their nurse was running late for work that day?