Why learning never stops

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Grant McIntyre: Dean, Faculty of Dental Surgery

Both of my parents were involved in education and when I was a child my mother, who was a teacher throughout her career, would frequently tell me that every day is a school day. In the six months since becoming Dean of the Dental Faculty, no two days have been the same and, in the interesting journey thus far, there has been quite a steep learning curve. While I am hoping that every day throughout my tenure continues to be filled with varied and productive activities, I am hoping the learning curve flattens out.

The College continues to surprise me with its reach, depth and integration with everything to do with health in the UK and globally.

I am accustomed to meetings, having been an NHS consultant for 20 years, and some of these meetings have been of considerable interest to me in developing services and shaping the future. However, the RCSEd operates on a whole different level.

There is a seismic shift taking place in global dental education and training, and it is reassuring that our College is so well placed to work with UK and international partners to continue to lead innovation across the profession.

When taking up the role of Dean, I was keen to do what I could in the role to influence the crisis in access to dentistry in the UK and across the globe. Within a short space of time this seems to have become a central tenet of my role, with the Birmingham-based policy unit and the marketing and communications team identifying a stream of articles within the UK media on the dire situation in many areas of the UK.

 “Education and training are at the heart of all that we do within the Faculty and wider College”

As we emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, there was much media focus on DIY dentistry. As time has gone on the lack of dental checkups is being linked to an increase in head and neck cancer, with heart-wrenching human stories of morbidity and mortality.

This accompanies the variation in trainee salaries across the devolved nations, in both general dental practice and NHS hospital dental practice, which is a significant challenge in specific areas of the UK.

Political weight

The Faculty of Dental Surgery is working very closely with the College to influence the agenda across the UK nations through our manifesto work, and in particular as we all start to focus on the next UK general election.

In addition, Members and Fellows will note the Faculty is commenting very publicly on a number of news articles to ensure your voice is heard through our communication channels. The Faculty has produced a robust response to the UK government consultation on ‘Creating a smoke-free generation’ and we have collaborated with the patient safety team and wider College to ensure the relationship between smoking and general health, and most specifically head and neck cancer, is in no doubt to our policymakers.

Education and training are at the heart of all that we do within the Faculty and wider College. Providing education for current Members, and Fellows, as well as those joining us in the future is important.

Along with this, training the trainers in collaboration with the Faculty of Dental Trainers is also crucial. It is often said that without training there will be no healthcare services in the future. Therefore, as a Faculty we will be focusing on this aim and developing our educational offerings.

The high esteem in which the UK training system is held across the globe underpins its quality and ensures we are training the dental team for the future. The Faculty recognises the importance of providing support for future examination candidates through examination information sessions in relation to our Diploma, Dental Care Professional, MFDS, Membership and Specialty Membership examinations. These information sessions are the first part in the journey for our Members and Fellows of the future – if you would like to help with these activities, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.