Information about the practice

The National Health Service (General Dental Services) (Scotland) Regulation 2010 Schedule 5: Information to be included in Patient Information Leaflets [1] and amendments [2,3] specifies the mandatory items to be included in a patient information leaflet. The National Standards for Dental Services [4] indicates other items of information which should be easily accessible to the patient and could be included in a patient information leaflet (sometimes referred to as a practice information leaflet) or provided separately in a different format.

These items are listed below.

^aSchedule 5 item
^bNational Standards item

Include partners, associates and assistants ^a
Name (including first name), as it appears on the dental register ^a
Date of registration as a dental practitioner and details of any dental qualifications that are recognised by the General Dental Council (GDC) ^a
Whether the dentist or any person referred to above provides only orthodontic treatment ^a
Whether a dental hygienist or dental therapist is employed at the practice premises ^a

Address and telephone numbers of the practice, including the registered name and address if the practice is a corporate body ^a
Address to which correspondence should be sent, including for mobile surgeries ^a
Practice opening hours, including days and hours when each dentist is usually at the practice ^a
Arrangements for care if the dentist with whom the patient is registered with (i.e. the capitation agreement) is not available ^a
Directions to the practice ^b
Whether there is access to the dental surgery without the use of stairs ^a
The accessibility of the practice premises (including surgery and toilets) to wheelchair users ^a
How the practice meets requirements for patients with additional needs, for example hearing induction loop, availability of an interpreter, large-print literature on request (See Improving access for disabled patients ) ^b
Details of any languages other than English that are spoken by the dentist, in line with each individual dentist’s wishes, and information on how any specific language needs might be met ^a
Practice policy on accepting new patients ^b
How to book an appointment and any systems used to remind the patient of their appointment ^b
Practice policy on cancelling appointments and associated charges for non attendance ^a
Arrangements for out-of-hours care (see SDCEP guidance ‘Emergency Dental Care’ [5] for information) ^a
Arrangements for offering emergency appointments (see SDCEP guidance ‘Emergency Dental Care’ [5] for information) ^a
Consequences of termination of a capitation arrangement (See De-registration of NHS patients) ^a

Whether NHS only or NHS and private care are offered, and whether any insurance schemes are offered ^b
Details of care and treatment available under general dental services ^a
Explanation of NHS charges for services and exemptions from charges ^a
Details of repairs and replacements which are provided free of charge ^a
Payment options ^b
Charges for failing to attend appointments ^b

An explanation of the importance of regular dental care ^a
A statement about how to provide feedback or raise a complaint ^b
A statement that all personal information is kept confidentially in line with current legislation i.e. Data Protection Act (2018) [6] and the UK GDPR [7]
A statement that the practice’s inspection report and details of other quality improvement measures, such as audit, are available on request ^b

Develop and make available an up-to-date patient information leaflet (see Patient Information Leaflet Example template) which includes, at least, those items set out in Schedule 5 [1,2,3].

Consider making all other information shown above available either in the patient information leaflet or in some other format, for example on the practice website or displayed on posters, notices or supplementary leaflets in the waiting area.

Consider regular updates to provide patients with information about changes to the practice and/or answers to frequently asked questions.

Sources of information

Templates

Information about the practice

Personal and professional details of all dentists in the practice

Contact information, hours of work and access arrangements:

Treatment and charges

Additional Information

Sources of information

Templates