A Dundee dental therapist has been forced to stop treating patients and take a job in a shoe shop – amid a four-month wait for registration papers.
Stacy Ozaydin qualified as a dental therapist and hygienist 17 years ago.
She usually works in Stobswell Dental Practice doing a range of treatments, including fillings and teeth extraction for adults and children.
Dental clinicians have to register annually with the General Dental Council (GDC) to keep working.
But a long delay with registration paperwork means she has been unable to treat patients since the start of August.
‘Had to claim benefits and take shop job’
Stacy, 38, says: “I’m a single mum to a six-year-old.
“I’ve had to claim benefits and take on a Christmas temp job in a shoe shop in the meantime to keep food on the table.
“And if patients are wondering why they can’t get an appointment it would be great to get answers from the GDC as to why they can’t restore clinicians faster.
“It feels like they are accountable to no one.”
And while Stacy has never missed the July 31 deadline before, she realised her mistake in the early hours of August 1 this year, and instantly submitted her papers.
‘Taken off the register’
“Before this happened I’d been suffering brain fog after having long Covid, which is why I think I missed the deadline,” she explains.
“But I called the GDC as soon as I realised my mistake. I had patients booked in at Stobswell that week!
“The GDC said I’d be automatically taken off the register and it would be illegal for me to go into work until I restored my registration.
“I frantically got all the documentation printed off (24 pages including signed passport pictures) and sent it next day delivery.
“The GDC received this on August 2.
“I am still waiting to be restored to the register almost four months on.
“I’ve had to get Universal Credit and go to the job centre where a job coach told me I had to spend 25 hours a week looking for a job.
“Even though I’ve got a job at Stobswell and patients waiting, I’m working in a shop.
“And I had to take money out of an ISA I have, with a 25% penalty, to get by.
“It’s been soul-destroying. I just need my registration back.”
Stacy trained in Glasgow and qualified in 2007, working across the UK in both private and NHS dentistry, before moving back home to Dundee.
‘Dentists under pressure’
She adds: “It says on the GDC website it should take up to 15 working days, though it could be longer in busy periods.
“I’ve been chasing them, phoning and emailing constantly since then. They say they have a Covid backlog.
“I’ve had to send different documentations for proof of professional developments. And have been back and forth to the GDC and Dental Scotland since then.
“My practice could fill my position because they are under pressure from patients too.
“My position exists to take work from dentists so they can get on with seeing others.”
Stacy says hers is not an isolated case. She says many other dental clinicians, posting on social media and dental networks, are also experiencing delays with registration.
General Dental Council responds
A spokesperson for the General Dental Council says: “We communicate extensively with registrants, for example, on up to 15 occasions for those approaching the deadline.
“The periods following renewal are the busiest of the year for this type of application and this can lead to longer processing times.
“Delays can also be caused by other issues such as required information or documentation not being provided, or if other concerns are raised with us which need to be resolved before a professional can be restored to the register.
“We aim to progress applications as rapidly as possible, and we recognise our performance is not currently where we need it to be.
“There are several reasons for this. The greatest driver is team capacity which, due to recruitment challenges and illness, was significantly reduced over this busy period.
“We are working through current applications as quickly as we can.
“To aid this, have introduced new efficiencies to speed up the processes where possible and are offering weekend overtime to boost our output.”
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