07/10/2008

£11 Million Boost For Dental Hospitals

An extra £11 million will be allocated to dental hospitals across England to fund new IT systems that will support the training of dental students, the Department of Health announced today.

Today's funding is part of a joint initiative by the Department of Health, NHS Connecting for Health and the Dental IT programme board.

As well as training future dental care professionals, NHS dental hospitals and associated dental schools research ways to improve oral and dental health and provide specialist clinical services for patients.

Deputy Chief Dental Officer, Tony Jenner said: "This extra funding reinforces the Government's commitment to supporting dental hospitals and expanding the dental workforce.

"The NHS now has over 4,000 more dentists than it did in 1997 and we have increased the number of undergraduate training places by 25% to ensure we have more dentists in the areas of the country that need them the most."

The £11 million will be divided between each of the ten trusts that applied for funding.

The trusts will have responsibility for using the money to train dental students in the use of clinical computer programmes that they will use in practice.

(JM)

Related UK National News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

06 February 2006
TUC launches fund manager survey
The Trades Union Congress has launched its 2006 Fund Manager Voting Survey. The survey asks how investors voted on key issues at company AGMs last year. The survey provides pension fund trustees with information about how managers are addressing governance issues at the companies they invest in.
06 April 2004
Charity lottery fund gets 'Big' launch
The new body responsible for giving out half of the money that goes to good causes will be called the Big Lottery Fund, Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell announced today.
11 April 2011
Dental Practices To Trial New Contract
For the first time, from this summer, dentists will be paid for the quality of the treatment they give rather than the number of treatments provided, Health Minister Lord Howe announced today. Sixty two dental practices have been selected to trial a new dental contract that will help improve outcomes for patients.
25 November 2003
£15m earmarked for access to NHS dentistry
Around £15 million has been earmarked for NHS dentistry to provide easier access for patients, the government has announced today. Strategic Health Authorities (SHAs) will decide how the funds can best be targeted with their Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) and it is planned that these allocations are made by 31 December this year.
24 February 2015
'Black Alert' Hospital Cancels Routine Operations
Plymouth Hospitals Trust in Devon has cancelled more than 1,000 routine operations, according to a report by the BBC. It is understood that the hospital has been on "black alert" since January: a black alert is issue when a hospital is overwhelmed by demand.