A dental education facility that treats NHS patients while training the dental health care professionals of the future is holding an open event on Wednesday 14th June from 2.30pm – 5.30pm.
Run and managed by Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise, the Exeter Dental Education Facility (DEF) at Veysey Close, Exeter, is one of four such facilities in the South West.
Visitors to the event will have opportunities to tour the building, take part in family activities and sign up for dental clinics.
The new facility opened in 2016 and replaced one that operated within Heavitree Hospital. In an innovation in dentistry education, students treat NHS patients under the supervision of qualified dental professionals.
The Exeter DEF has 42 dental chairs and provides a training environment for students in the dental and dental therapy and hygiene undergraduate programmes. The new facility also has a 16-chair Simulated Dental Learning Environment, where students can hone their clinical skills on ‘smart’ dummies.
The range of treatments available includes fillings, extractions, root canals and periodontal treatment for gums.
Alongside the clinical operations of the Exeter Dental Education Facility are those managed by PDSE’s Community Engagement Team whose role is to engage with local community groups where there is oral health inequality and raise awareness of how to achieve and maintain good oral health, and how to access treatment.
Dr. Robert Witton, Director, Peninsula Dental Social Enterprise, commented: “Our facility allows us to deliver a wider dental service to Exeter, not just in a clinical setting but also out in the community. By bringing together awareness in the community and partnering that with access to care in our Dental Education Facilities, we are already making a significant and positive difference to oral health in the region.”
Since the first Dental Education Facility opened in Exeter in 2008, more than 18,000 people across Devon and Cornwall have received NHS dental care at the facilities.
If you would like to be considered for NHS dental treatment you can register your interest by calling 0345 155 8109. More information is available by visiting www.peninsuladental.org.uk
