1. The cost of training a dentist is £200k (£120k is paid by the NHS, £45k by student fees and £35k by the Higher Education Funding Council for England).
2. 20 counties in Europe teach dentistry in English and fees vary from £3k/year to £15k/year.
3. 2018/19 dental students are likely to face the prospect of residual student debt of an average of nearly £61k. Most of this figure will be in the shape of student loans.
4. Empathy levels during the first year of dental school are quite high and comparable to those reported in medical specialties such as psychiatry, but empathy levels drop during the second year of dental training and remain at this lower level throughout dental school (Sherman 2005). This is likely to be because dentistry is procedural driven and students become more focused on the procedure and forget patient attached to it!
5. Dentistry is the highest earning subject (£30k) compared with other university degrees with starting salaries £12k higher than those studying design and creative arts (the lowest earning subjects).
6. There were 23,201 dentists in 2012/13 in England – an increase of 15.1% since 2006/07. With regard to the sex distribution, there has been a continuous increase in the percentage of female dentists, while the number of male dentists has remained fairly stable. Today, females make up over 45% of the workforce.
7. The GDC takes more action against registrants than any other regulator worldwide and when compared with any other profession.
8. UK dental teams are sued on average 2-3 times more often than GP practice teams.
9. There has been a 200% increase in UK dental claims since 2010 and the GDC had 3500 referrals in 2015.
10. In 1990, there was a 1 in 50 chance of a claim being made against you during your career; the figure is now 1 in 5.
11. The top 20 UK claims by value: Perio 44.7%, implants 28.8%, orthodontics 10.5%, implants and perio 5.5%, maxillofacial 5.5%, other 5% (Dental Protection).
12. The average fitness to practice hearing lasts 4 days and costs £19k.
13. The new contract is likely to be rolled out in 2018/19 – remuneration will be based on UDA activity, DQOF and capitation. There will be 2 blends.

General Dental