Referral for dental care
Referral of children for dental care
As it is unacceptable to leave caries in children unmanaged, when the care of an individual child is not feasible within your service, it is imperative that the child is referred to the appropriate service to receive care. In such cases it is the responsibility of the clinician to follow their local referral policy and to work in partnership to provide shared care. It remains the referring clinician’s responsibility to provide the referred child’s continued regular dental care, including appropriate emergency care, during and after this period.
Only refer cases after appropriate local treatments have been exhausted, using the strategies outlined in Helping the family.
Be aware of the referral options available locally and the agreed referral procedures.
When referring, ensure that this is to the appropriate service and that the agreed local procedures are followed.
- The 2017 Scottish Dental Needs Assessment Programme (SDNAP) Oral Health and Dental Services for Children report provides a useful outline in Appendix 1 of where different types of referral should be directed in Scotland.
For children who live in a different locality than your practice, be aware that you should refer to the service local to the child. This may be different to the service you routinely refer to.
If a child is referred for care, ensure that you provide their continued dental care.
Increasingly, electronic referral systems are being implemented. However, in situations where you are writing a referral letter ensure all the relevant information is included. The Referral checklist can be used as a reminder.