Following a historical infection prevention and control breach, which has been reviewed by NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency, we have sent duty of candour letters to patients who had treatment at the Western Avenue Dental Practice from 2016-2023. This letter and issue in no way relates to the current owner of the practice, who has helped us with this historical review.
We have discovered that, between 2013 and 2023, at the Western Avenue Dental Practice, under the previous owner, the correct infection prevention control procedures were not always fully undertaken. For example, in some cases handheld pieces of equipment were disinfected/wiped rather than put through the steriliser and some single use items were reused.
The level of risk is considered to be very low, and only for patients who had ‘invasive’ procedures such as fillings or root canal treatment. While we are clearly communicating to patients that the risk associated with the historical breach is very low, you may have patients request a BBV test, or they may wish to discuss further with you. You can find information on our website.
If any practice experiences an unusually high or unmanageable demand arising directly from this incident then provision has been made to provide support. If this applies to your practice, please contact nclicb.dentalqueries@nhs.net for further information and next steps. This is a dedicated email set up for this issue. Thank you for your support.