MyGDCHow we investigate public protection issues or concerns
Our public protection role includes investigating serious concerns about the clinical practice, behaviour or health of dental professionals. Where we find that a dental professional has fallen short of our standards, we will take action to protect the public.
Our investigations are limited to issues where harm was (or may have been) caused to somebody, or where people could lose confidence in the dental profession.
We cannot resolve complaints, mediate civil disputes or order the payment of compensation or a refund. If you have a complaint about dental services or treatment see our step-by-step guide.
Our investigations follow a series of stages and are designed to ensure fairness to all those involved. The different stages are set out below.
The stages of a Fitness to Practise (FtP) case:
Stage 1: Initial assessment
We make an initial assessment of the information received and decide if there are any issues that could affect patient safety or public confidence in the dental professions. Where there are issues that require investigation, we open a case.
We check to make sure we are the right organisation to investigate and refer matters to other organisations where they are best placed to look into the matter.
We will not open a case for issues that do not need further investigation and will tell the person who reported the concerns the reasons for our decision. We do not inform the dental professional involved in these circumstances.
We aim to make an initial assessment decision in 90% of cases within 5 working days of us receiving the concern.
Stage 2: Assessment / Investigation stage
Cases opened are referred to the assessment stage for full investigation, which may involve:
- informing the dental professional involved
- collecting information relevant to the case, including patient records and clinical advice when needed
- gathering any other relevant information, such as medical reports in cases about health conditions or police reports relating to any criminal offence.
The process set out above is streamlined for cases that relate to clinical practice and involve a single patient. In these cases, we will first make initial inquiries. We only do this when the dental professional involved has not had any allegations referred to case examiners (see below) within the previous 12 months.
Our initial inquiries will be limited to requesting the relevant clinical patient records. These will then be reviewed by a Clinical Dental Adviser before a decision is reached on how to proceed.
If you receive a request for information from us, please respond as soon as you can to make sure we are fully informed as early as possible in the process. We typically close around 80% of these cases at this stage of the process, with no further action.
When we have all relevant information, we review it and make a decision to either:
- close the case and take no further action
- refer it to case examiners for a decision.
Cases are referred if there is an allegation that a dental professional’s fitness to practise may be impaired. No decision is made on whether or not an allegation is true at this stage.
We aim to complete the investigation stage in 75% of cases within seven months (30 working weeks) from the date an issue is reported to us in straightforward cases and more complex investigations may take just under a year (50 working weeks).
Stage 3: Case examiners stage
Case examiners consider allegations alongside all relevant information at this stage, including any comments from the dental professional involved and the person who raised the matter. Those involved will receive a copy of the information being considered (sensitive health information is not shared).
We aim to complete this stage of the process in 75% of cases, from an assessment decision to a case examiner decision, in 18 to 20 weeks depending on the complexity of the case. The case examiners can make a number of different decisions. Find out more about case examiners.
If the case examiners refer a case to a hearing, you will be contacted by a member of our legal presentation team. You can find more information about what happens at a hearing and listings of hearings and decisions on the Dental Professionals Hearings Service website.
Serious or immediate risks
It may be necessary to impose an interim order to restrict a dental professional’s registration while an investigation takes place.
The Interim Orders Committee at the Dental Professionals Hearing Service will assess any serious or immediate risks to the public or patient safety or confidence in the professions and decide if an interim order is necessary. A referral can be made at any stage of the FtP process, and the committee may decide that no action is needed.
Any restrictions on registration are recorded on the Register.