The situation now is somewhat different in that a very large proportion of dentists are now legally using the title. I have spoken with a large number of younger dentists who have been using the title since qualifying and the general consensus of opinion seems to be that they have no intention of ceasing to use the title, whatever the Council might decide.
We need to make it abundantly clear to the GDC that if they do vote to implement a ban, dentists will ignore it and continue in their use of the title 'Doctor'. The Council would then find themselves in the embarassing position of being practically and financially unable to act against those dentists openly flouting it's guidelines.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI'm a dentist in Australia and it is with some amusement that I'm following this issue. At present, here it seems the pendulum has swung to the other extreme. We now have a national health regulatory board which oversees doctors, dentists, chiropractors, pharmacists, psychologists, physiotherapists, nurses and podiatrists. Chiropractors and osteopaths have been given permission to use the Dr title nationally as of July last year ( in most states they seem to have been using it before this time anyway). The fact of the matter is that the title is unregulated and unless one is putting themselves forward to be a medical practitioner, no one seems to bother.
It seems ridiculous that the GDC is wasting time on such an issue. A few things I would be raising in response to the proposal is:
- the lack of any evidence that dentists using this title has caused confusion for a patient and resulted in any detriment
- the fact most other countries in the world recognize dentists as being Dr (not sure of ones which don't)
- The surgical and medical aspects of dental training and practice, particularly with respect to drug prescription and administration as well as diagnosis
In many respects, dentists in the UK are able to do more 'doctor' work than us. For example IV sedation here is no longer allowed unless a barrage of requirements are met and a 2 year diploma is obtained. Similarly, I've worked with a few UK dentists who have worked as SHOs in hospitals and done work which would need OMFS registration (and hence a medical degree) here.
Having had a few patients in my practice who have emigrated from the UK and been rather stunned at the appalling quality of some NHS dentistry, I think the GDC should focus on the problem of how to raise the standard of dentistry in the UK rather than red herring issues such as titles.
Hi,
ReplyDeleteI have been using the title 'Dr' for years - for more than half my career - and have NO INTENTION of stopping no matter what the GDC decides. I have the title on all my documentation (passport, driving licence etc) and all my credit cards. Being hopefully less than 8 yrs from officiaql retirement, I am not changing anything back.
Modern passports do not have titles by default, but they can be endorsed with one by request.