Page 54 - RADC 2023

The College, intended Royal College of
General Dentistry
Nairn H F Wilson, Emeritus Professor of Dentistry, King’s College London; President Emeritus, College of General Dentistry
The 1st July 2021 will become an important date in the history of dentistry; the day the College, intended Royal College of General Dentistry (CGDent) became fully operation (Fig.1).
With hindsight, dentistry should have had the foresight to establish its own independent Royal College around the time the British Dental Association was formed in 1880. Historic links with surgery, dentistry comprising mostly exodontia at the time, and the power and influence of the Royal College of Surgeons of England resulted in the possible precursor to a Royal College
of Dentistry - the College of Dentists of England being scuppered a few years after its formation in 1856. It is suggested that this turn of events contributed to dentistry in the UK failing to achieve the standing, status and recognition enjoyed by all other mainstream healthcare professions, each with a long-established, highly respected Royal College. CGDent, hopefully RCGDent sooner rather than later, was conceived and created, amongst other important reasons, to address this failing and put dentistry on an equal footing with all other healthcare professions. In other words, thanks to CGDent and its ambitions, dentistry will no longer be the Cinderella of the healthcare professions in the UK.
Goals
CGDent has achieved a huge amount in
its two-year history but much remains to
be done. The goals to be realised include: the College becoming the ‘rock’ on which standards in dentistry are firmly anchored; the widespread adoption of the College’s
fit for future purpose career pathways for
all members of the dental team; the voice
of the College being respected, valued and, most importantly ‘heard’ as the unified, authoritative voice for the profession, and the College being recognised across healthcare and by the public and ‘officialdom’ as the ‘go to’ organisation for guidance and, amongst other things, identify dental professionals committed to quality-assured, continuous quality improvement in the provision of state-of-the-art oral healthcare.
Fig.1 The historic, post COVID pandemic lockdown launch of the College, intended Royal College of General Dentistry (CGDent) at the Barber Surgeons’ Hall on 1st July 2021. From left to right: Ian Mills, the outgoing Dean of the Faculty of General Dental Practice (UK); Janet Clarke OBE, then Chair of the CGDent Board of Trustees, Abhi Pal, first Elected President of CGDent; Nairn Wilson CBE, former Chair of the CGDent Board of Trustees and Honorary Founding President of the College, and Simon Thornton-Wood, Chief Executive of the College.
52 RADC BULLETIN 2023
Membership
Membership of the College is open to all member of the dental team with General Dental Council (GDC) registration or equivalent overseas licensure, and to individuals who contribute to excellence in dentistry, for example, basic dental scientists – dentistry now, more than ever being a fast developing, multidisciplinary biomedical clinical science rather than a branch of surgery. As such, CGDent is inclusive rather than elitist. Indeed, CGDent is a world
first in being the only collegiate body in dentistry, home and abroad, which embraces the whole dental team in all sectors of dentistry. All oral healthcare professionals, including new entrants to the profession
are eligible to become Associate Members of the College, hopefully many having been student members. As with all categories
of membership in the College, Associate Members, in addition to being a member
of the main body of the College, become a member of one of the College’s four faculties – the Faculty of Dentists, the Faculty of Dental Therapists and Hygienists, the Faculty of Dental Technologists and Clinical Dental Technologists and the Faculty of Dental Nurses and Orthodontic Therapists. Progression from Associate Member to
Full Member (MCGDent), Full Member to
Associate Fellow (AssocFCGDent), and Associate Fellow to Fellow (FCGDent), both in the main body of the membership of the College and in the faculties of the College
is by personal development, following the College’s carer pathways, rather than by postgraduate ‘make or break’ examinations, which, apart from being unpopular, do not necessarily assess and recognise excellence in the care of patients. In embarking on the relevant College career pathway members will have opportunity to take advantage
of the College’s Certified (enhanced) Membership Scheme, offering bespoke career mentoring and support. It is hoped that organisations, including contractors and indemnifiers will give suitable recognition to oral healthcare professionals at the different levels of membership in the College.
As with any college, the greater the membership, the more influential and impactful the college becomes. With growing influence comes more recognition and respect and, in turn appreciation of importance. All going according to plan, CGDent will get the rest of healthcare and ‘officialdom’ to recognise and understand the importance of oral health to general health and wellbeing, specifically in ageing patients and those with chronic non-communicable diseases such as diabetes.
EDUCATION