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Actions for the dental team

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Preparation by the dental team

In order to prepare to provide additional support:

Be aware of your responsibilities as described in the General Dental Council Standards for the Dental Team.

Ensure that child protection procedures are in place to address immediate concerns for a child’s welfare or safety.

Be aware of the responsibility to share information when there is a concern about a child or young person, following local protocols and procedures.

In Scotland, ensure that all members of the dental team are familiar with the GIRFEC approach and the five key GIRFEC questions.

Managing dental neglect or another concern about a child or young person’s wellbeing

The features that give cause for particular concern after parent/carers have been made aware of dental problems, and acceptable treatment offered, are summarised as:

  • obvious dental disease: untreated dental disease, particularly that which is obvious to a layperson or other non-dental health professional
  • significant impact: evidence that dental disease has resulted in a significant impact on the child's wellbeing 
  • failure to obtain care: parents or carers have access but persistently fail to obtain treatment for the child, as may be indicated by:
    • irregular attendance and repeated missed appointments
    • failure to complete planned treatment
    • returning in pain at repeated intervals
    • requiring repeated general anaesthesia for dental extractions

Failure to attend for treatment when the child has persistent pain or signs of infection is also indicative of dental neglect. 

When a child or young person presents with dental neglect*, which might be indicative of more general neglect, or there is another concern about their wellbeing: 

Follow the actions presented in GIRFEC and Child Protection and the Dental Team, which are structured around the five key GIRFEC questions and the tiered response.24

Continue to offer and provide the child or young person with appropriate prevention, advice and treatment.

If at any stage there is concern for a child or young person’s immediate safety, or that they are suffering significant harm, follow local procedures to make a child protection referral.

* Dental neglect has been defined as "the persistent failure to meet a child’s basic oral health needs, likely to result in the serious impairment of a child’s oral or general health or development". 24