Information
As a Corporate Parent, NHS Lothian are accountable for working in partnership with other services to accept responsibility of Care Experienced Children and Young People (CECYP), to prioritise needs led care provision that respects rights and supports them to succeed.
CECYP (up to the age of 26) include those:
- in residential care, including residential schools or secure care
- in foster care
- in kinship care, who live with a family member other than a parent
- who are looked after at home with a supervision order in place
- who are unaccompanied asylum seeking children
Working alongside the CECYP team, the Oral Health Service aims to:
- Support the registration of CECYP with a General Dental Practitioner (GDP).
- Provide urgent dental care for CECYP not registered with a GDP.
- Stabilise the oral health for CECYP prior to dental care being transferred to a GDP.
Treatment is provided under General Dental Service (GDS) terms and conditions with strict adherence to the Statement of Dental Remuneration (SDR).
Those under 26 years of age are entitled to NHS dental treatment free of charge.
Who can refer:
Referrals for Care Experienced Children and Young People (up to the age of 26) are accepted from the:
- NHS Lothian CECYP team
- General Medical Practitioner
- Social care professional supporting the Care Experienced individual
Who to refer:
The Oral Health Service accepts referrals for Care Experienced Children and Young People (up to the age of 26).
A person will be described as Care Experienced if they have been ‘in care’ at any point in their life, regardless of the duration. This includes those:
- in residential care, including residential schools or secure care
- in foster care
- in kinship care, who live with a family member other than a parent
- who are looked after at home with a supervision order in place
- who are unaccompanied asylum seeking children
Who not to refer:
- Patients registered with a General Dental Practitioner (GDP) in the locality of their current address. Please advise the Care Experienced individual to contact their GDP.
- Patients unregistered with a GDP with an acute dental problem. Please consult Emergency Dental Care for advice.
- Patients with a lesion in their mouth considered ‘urgent suspicion of cancer’. Referral should be made directly to the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery service based at St John’s Hospital using the specific SCI Gateway.
- Patients resident outwith the boundaries of NHS Lothian.
How to refer:
Please download, complete and email / send as per our dental referral form.
Please note that the secure transmission of emails containing patient information is the referrer’s responsibility.
Discharge criteria:
Patients will be discharged from the Oral Health Service for the following reasons:
- Their care is transferred to a General Dental Practice
- They fail to attend or repeatedly cancel their appointments at short notice. The referrer will be informed.
