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Rise in young female dentists working for the NHS, says new report

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  • Male and female workforce heading towards equal number

Regional information is available from this report

**23 August 2012

An increasing number of female dentists are working for the NHS, with the gap between male and female numbers narrowing, a new Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) report shows.

Of the almost 23,000 high street dentists who performed NHS activity in 2011/12; 44.5 per cent were female. This is up from 43.5 per cent on the previous year and from 38.8 per cent in 2006/07.

There has been a gradual increase in the number of female dentists making up the under-35 age group; which is now 55.4 per cent compared to 55.2 per cent in the previous year and 51.8 per cent in 2006/07.

Today’s report; NHS Dental Statistics for England: 2011/12 brings together information on different aspects of NHS dentistry in England, from the number of dentists working for the NHS and the amount of activity they perform, to the number of patients seen by an NHS dentist.

Key facts include:

  • 29.6 million patients (56.6 per cent of the population, including children and adults) were seen by an NHS dentist in the 24 months to June 2012; a 0.4 million increase on the 24 months to June 2011 (55.8 per cent of the population) and a 1.4 million increase on the 24 months to March 2006, immediately prior to the introduction of the current dental contract6 when 55.8 per cent of the population were seen by an NHS dentist.
  • 7.8 million child patients, or 70.7 per cent of children, were seen by an NHS dentist in the 24 months to June 2012; 0.4 percentage point (42,000) more than the 24 months to June 2011 when 70.4 per cent of children saw a dentist but the same number and percentage of children as in the 24 months to March 2006.
  • The number of courses of treatment performed on the NHS increased by 326,000 (0.8 per cent) in a year to reach 39.6 million in 2011/12. This number has been increasing each year since the courses of treatment measure was first introduced in 2006/07.

HSCIC chief executive Tim Straughan said: “Today’s figures show that more females are working for the NHS as high street dentists, with the under 35’s age group in particular made up of more women than men.

“Today’s figures come hot on the heels of two more HSCIC reports that show dentists’ working hours have gradually increased. Primary care dentists have also seen a drop in their taxable income. Together, these dentistry reports offer a broad picture of what is happening within the dental profession and its patients.”

ENDS

The report is at www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/dentalstats1112

Notes to editors

    1. HSCIC was previously known as the NHS Information Centre. It is England’s authoritative, independent source of health and social care information. It works with a wide range of health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researchers, regulators and policymakers in their work. The HSCIC also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.
    2. Where patients seen figures are quoted, these refer to the number of unique patients who started a course of treatment at any time during the 24 months prior to the quarter end date.
    3. Percentage of patients seen figures for PCTs are calculated using the number of patients seen by NHS dentists in a PCT and the estimated residential population of the PCT. Patients may not necessarily receive treatment in the PCT in which they are resident.
    4. The current NHS dental contract arrangements were introduced with effect from April 2006
    5. Dental services provided privately are not covered in the report.
    6. Dental activity is measured in terms of Courses of Treatment (CoTs) and Units of Dental Activity (UDAs. UDAs is the technical term used in the NHS dental contract system regulations to describe weighted CoTs. Weightings used to convert the CoT data to UDAs by band are set out below. Band 3 receives the highest weighting as it is within this band that the most complex treatments are performed.

  1. A Course of Treatment (COT) may include more than one clinical treatment (for example, a patient may have a scale and polish as well as a filling within one CoT). A CoT falls into one of three main bands (based on the complexity of the most complex aspect of the treatment). Band 1 covers a check up and simple treatment (such as examination, diagnosis (e.g. x-rays), advice on preventative measures, and a scale and polish), Band 2 includes mid range treatments (such as fillings, extractions, and root canal work) in addition to Band 1 work, and Band 3 includes complex treatments (such as crowns, dentures, and bridges) in addition to Band 1 and Band 2 work. There is also a separate Urgent Band which includes a specified set of possible treatments provided to a patient in certain circumstances.
  2. For media enquires please call 0845 257 6990 or contact mediaenquiries@ic.nhs.uk