Dental Protection confirms its position regarding indemnity for dental nurses and announces its new subscription categories from April 2007

Dental Protection strongly supports the team approach to the provision of dental care and treatment. It similarly supports the registration of dental nurses, and welcomed the opening of the GDC's dental nurses register with effect from July 31st 2006.

In all its formal responses on the question of compulsory indemnity for dental registrants, Dental Protection has regularly re-iterated its view that registered dental nurses should be encouraged to maintain professional indemnity in their own right. Because the GDC has not yet determined the requirements of what it considers to represent "adequate" and "appropriate" indemnity, in compliance with the Dentists Act 1984 (Amendment) Order 2005, it is premature to speculate on what those requirements will be for dental nurses (or other groups of registrants). A further complication arises from the fact that once registered, dental nurses are able to own and operate dental practices, which would materially change their indemnity needs and requirements.

Professional indemnity is important not only to protect the nurses (and their registration) individually, in a professional sense, but also because dentists and PCTs have voiced concerns that dental nurses should be indemnified against clinical negligence claims, in order to comply with the new nGDS and nPDS contracts which were introduced in April 2006. At present the majority of dental nurses remain unregistered, and claims and complaints in respect of any negligent acts and omissions which involve them, tend to be directed to their employers and/or the individual dentists with whom they are working at the time. However, dental nurses - whether registered or unregistered - can still be named as defendants in legal proceedings or joined into third party actions.

In July 2006, Dental Protection responded to the current period of uncertainty, by offering to provide indemnity (against clinical negligence claims) for nurses through their employers free of charge if those dentists are members of Dental Protection in the full DFU category. This category of membership is specially designed for full-time general dental practitioners who own a practice and/or employ staff and/or hold contracts with a PCT for the provision of services by others. Since April 2007, this same facility has been extended to a number of other membership categories which include responsibilities as a practice principal.

This interim arrangement, however, does not wholly replace the desirability of a registered dental nurse having professional indemnity in their own right. It is also essential, for the long-term protection of the nurses, that this indemnity should be occurrence based, which is the comprehensive kind of indemnity offered by Dental Protection. This means that if the nurse is a member of Dental Protection at the time of an incident, they can seek assistance at any time in the future (even several years later) if a complaint or claim later comes to light, even if they are no longer employed by the same dentist, or no longer working at all. Dental nurses who might leave dentistry temporarily (eg a career break) or permanently, are left potentially exposed if their indemnity takes the form of claims made insurance, and the policy does not automatically include an extended reporting period ("run off") for all potential situations. This has been reflected in a recent position statement published by the GDC, and in its ‘Frequently Asked Questions' on the subject of professional indemnity.

Details of the individual Dental Protection membership arrangements for dental nurses were published on April 1st 2007.

This gives dental nurses a flexible range of options to provide seamless, appropriate and continuing protection, before and after registration, and allowing for part-time work and even practice ownership (if applicable). Dental Protection does not see this as an opportunity to maximise subscription revenue, but rather, as an opportunity to increase mutual protection and patient safety through team-working and improved risk management. Reflecting this, up to five named dental nurses can be indemnified against negligence claims, with no additional subscriptions being payable at all either by the dental nurse, or the employing dentist. We hope that many dentists and nurses will take full advantage of these indemnity arrangements at no additional cost to themselves. This makes it more likely that a team approach will be taken to risk management within the practice.

Any dental nurses working for a Dental Protection member within such an arrangement, can then apply for an inexpensive "top-up" membership to provide them with all the additional personal membership benefits (including assistance with GDC matters) at a reduced subscription rate which reflects the fact that negligence claims are already separately provided for. The same "top-up" option is available for those who are indemnified through another employer (eg a corporate employer, NHS Trust, dental hospital, defence forces etc). This is a sensible and responsible option for registered dental nurses who become personally subject to the jurisdiction of the GDC for the first time.

Dental nurses who are not indemnified against negligence claims through the full "practice principal" membership of the employing dentist, or through another employer (eg a corporate employer, NHS Trust, dental hospital, defence forces etc), can elect to obtain full professional indemnity for themselves in their own right by applying for personal membership in one of a range of categories, to suit their needs and preferences.