Dental guidance programme turns twenty

Dental guidance programme turns twenty

The Scottish Dental Clinical Effectiveness Programme (SDCEP) is a well-regarded source of user-friendly, evidence-based clinical guidance.

2024 marks SDCEP’s twentieth anniversary; an important milestone, from which we can reflect on what’s been achieved in the last two decades.

SDCEP was established with Scotland’s Dental Action Plan funding in NES in 2004 under the direction of Prof. Jan Clarkson and with Dr Doug Stirling leading guidance development.

The topics that the SDCEP team has tackled have been diverse, including:

• conscious sedation
• instrument decontamination
• drug prescribing
• dental caries in children
• drugs associated with osteonecrosis of the jaw
• periodontal care
• novel anticoagulants

SDCEP also provides advice on practice management and quality assurance via the online Practice Support Manual.

Evolving a rigorous methodology has been crucial to SDCEP’s success in providing resources that are both evidence-informed and user-friendly. In 2016, SDCEP became the only dental organisation to gain National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) accreditation for its guidance development process, which signifies quality and reliability.

Fundamental to achieving NICE accreditation has been the contribution of SDCEP’s partner programme Translation Research in a Dental Setting (TRiaDS). Through the work of TRiaDS, stakeholder views, current practice and potential barriers to implementation of guidance recommendations are identified and guidance implementation evaluated.

SDCEP has also provided ‘implementation advice’ about antibiotic prophylaxis for infective endocarditis and reducing dental amalgam use. Similarly, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, SDCEP provided important resources to support practices and policy decisions.

Use of SDCEP products is not restricted to Scotland, having become recognised as a valuable resource throughout the UK and beyond and used extensively in undergraduate and postgraduate education and adopted in numerous other countries.

Going forward, SDCEP has moved to delivering its guidance online, enabling users to access the most up-to-date information. With heightened concerns about the climate crisis, SDCEP now highlights how following guidance recommendations can help practices reduce the environmental impact of oral healthcare.

NHS Education for Scotland’s Dental Director, Prof. David Felix said:

“Over the past 20 years, working closely with the profession, SDCEP has become the ‘go to’ for dental guidance. Many thanks must go to SDCEP’s unique and skilled team and to the many dental colleagues and other contributors who have willingly given their time and shared their expertise to help craft SDCEP resources that are evidence-based, user-friendly and greatly valued.”

For further information about SDCEP visit www.sdcep.org.uk.

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