We’re excited to announce that Vakmentor is heading to The Dentistry Show on the 1st-2nd March! On Saturday 2nd March, Seema Sharma will be chairing this core CPD event in the Aspire Academy/CORE theatre. If you’re one of the 40,000 dental professionals who are reaching the end of their 5 year CPD cycle in July 2013, you won’t want to miss out on this!

The event is sponsored by Vakmentor and is designed to give you valuable credits in all the CORE topics including Recognising Oral Cancer in the GDC’s newly recommended learning area. These topics are tailored to suit all dental professionals across the two day event.

What the day involves

Starting at 10am, you will learn about radiography and radiation protection with Jo Russell, Managing Director of Oracle Solutions. You’ll be taught about the different types of radiation and their sources, the legal regulations regarding its use, radiation protection required in your practice, each staff member’s role in radiation safety and how to document radiation procedures.

The second lecture is at 11am with Sandra Smith, Dental Infection Control Advisor and Decontamination Lead at the NHS South East London and London Deanery. In this session Sandra reviews the requirements of the Care Quality Commission Outcome 8 and talks you through the latest dental decontamination guidance. Sandra will give you the latest guidance and practical tips on how to implement it, the best practice and essential quality requirements and how to recall the latest occupational health requirements for dental health care workers.

From 12pm, Abbas Zaidi will talk you through medical emergencies. As a Cardiologist at St George’s Hospital, London he can prepare you for a variety of medical emergencies including acute cardiorespiratory arrest, myocardial infarction (heart attack), managing an unconscious patient along with choking and aspiration. During the presentation you’ll learn what you need to have in your emergency first aid kit and how to use medical equipment and medications safely.

A short presentation by Dr Philip Lewis, BDS, General Dental Practitioner will follow at 1pm until 2.45pm. Dr Lewis will explain how all members of the dental team can get involved in detecting mouth cancer. You’ll be shown the importance of regular oral health scans and how these can be performed in an accurate and non-harmful way. By the end of the presentation you’ll be able to identify signs and symptoms of mouth cancer, risk factors, recognise suspicious lesions around the mouth and lips, differential diagnosis and how routinely screening for oral cancer can minimise any risks.

Learning made easy with Vakmentor

The modules are repeated in the afternoon. After the presentations, come and say hello to us over at the Vakmentor stand! You’ll find many of the core GDC subjects are available as modules on our e-learning platform where you can access them anytime you want. This makes it the ideal solution for the busy dental professional who needs to learn on the go.

Do you like to learn in bite sized chunks? Can’t wait to see us at The Dentistry Show? Why not try Vakmentor for FREE? Go to: www.vakmentor.com to get started.

Gaynor Barrett is the Owner and Director of Seminars@thirtyeight, a centre in London which provides dentists with continual professional development. She has plenty of experience in providing world-class lectures and seminars.

We are pleased to introduce Gaynor as an expert guest speaker on the vakmentor platform where she provides her level of expertise to the field of quality assurance, risk management, clinical and operational audits and key performance indicators. Gaynor shares her knowledge as an expert mentor in one vakmentor episode.

In the Assessing Quality of Service episode, Gaynor is joined by her manager, Jane-Louise Moore to discuss what quality of service means and the vision your practice wishes to pursue to achieve this. She mentions the importance of teamwork and assessing the services you provide, both from a professional and a patient point of view.

Gaynor will guide you through how to define your own practice vision including the importance of creating your own statement of purpose. She explains why assessing the level of service you provide and setting realistic targets is another key step to consider when reviewing the quality of service you are providing.

By understanding audit systems and developing your own gap analysis and plan, Gaynor walks you through the importance of keeping a close eye on key performance indicators (KPIs) and why you need to carry out audits or risk assessments to stay on top of this.

This vakmentor episode will also show you how to put a plan in place so that should a CQC inspector call, the whole team is prepared, ready to comply with regulations and able to provide evidence to demonstrate the required outcomes.

If you want to learn more about how to maintain quality service in your practice, you won’t want to miss out on this vakmentor episode where Gaynor reveals her pearls of wisdom with you! To learn more about Seminars@thirtyeight, please visit: http://38devonshirestreet.co.uk/

Why should I learn with vakmentor?

Vakmentor is a different approach to learning. It provides you with a variety of learning tools to deepen your understanding of a topic by using visual, auditory and kinaesthetic techniques.

By comprising video, audio and activities, it enables you to learn important topics on a module by module basis. The videos also contain keywords to provide you with more context about any terms you may have heard within the videos.

Each of the episodes also has Doo-its which can enhance what you’ve learnt through a series of activities which encourage you to engage with each of the modules. When you want to test what you’ve learnt, try the quiz at the end of each episode which will allow you to retain information and commit what you’ve learnt to memory.

If you want to monitor the quality of service which your dental practice offers, then you won’t want to miss out on this episode. Why not give vakmentor a go by choosing our FREE trial? Please visit: www.vakmentor.com to get started.

A recent report by the General Dental Council found that a dentist based in Romford, North East London was struck off following a public hearing into allegations of clinical failings and dishonesty. This case is a poignant reminder to the profession of the importance of attaining informed consent when it comes to every aspect of carrying out dental treatment.

The GDC committee heard that one of Mr Tariq Mushtaq’s patients known simply as ‘Patient A’ had a number of issues when he was having a wisdom tooth extracted. Some of the complaints included failing to obtain informed consent for the extraction of the tooth, failing to exercise sufficient care during the extraction procedure, as well as causing unnecessary tissue and nerve damage.

Alongside this he also failed to ensure the injected anaesthetic was sufficient enough to be effective before continuing treatment. Additionally there was a forged patient signature and false, inaccurate and dishonest notes were made regarding the patient’s case.

How vakmentor can keep your practice consensual

Vakmentor can help you to avoid situations like this and is the ideal solution for ensuring your practice stays on top of the issues surrounding patient consent. We have a module entitled Consent to Care and Treatment which is devoted entirely to the topic of informed consent and demystifying CQC. This is particularly important in relation to CQC Outcome 2 which states that before people are given any examination, care, treatment or support they should be asked if they agree to it.

Vakmentor can guide you through the GDC’s Principles of Consent, valid consent and the importance of good record keeping. In the episode which features Lena Vakil, Specialist in Oral Surgery and Jenin Khanam, Associate Solicitor at Charles Russell LLP, where she specialises in the dental sector.

Together they will walk you through the ongoing process of informed and valid consent, the age of consent and how to determine responsibility, along with how to deal with difficult situations where you might have to assess a patient’s suitability for a particular treatment.

Communication issues surrounding this topic will be discussed, along with when a decision is mutually agreed and analysing all risks during the shared decision making process. Determining responsibility can be a contentious topic, but Lena and Jenin will talk you through when it falls on the dental practitioner to identify a problem and take responsibility.

Finally you will learn how to identify any areas which could be cause for concern and using practical tasks in our Doo-its section, take part in a series of activities which will encourage you to meet your targets and avoid any failures.

When you’ve followed the series of keywords throughout each section of this module and the series of Doo-its, you can then use the quiz to retain the information you’ve learnt so that you remember it in the long term.

If you want to keep your practice informed and consensual, why not dip your toes in and give vakmentor a try? To get started, please go to www.vakmentor.com to start your FREE trial.

Arun Mehra is Managing Director at Samera Ltd, a firm which provides a range of business solutions to UK dentists which includes everything from accountancy to marketing and motivating your staff.

We are pleased to introduce Arun as an expert guest speaker here at vakmentor where he shares his in-depth knowledge of business, finance and dental practice management. He featured as a guest in one of the modules, which can be downloaded on vakmentor or viewed as part of a membership subscription in addition to other essential dental business modules.

In The First Three Years – Finance and Strategy episode, Arun mentions the importance of a strategic plan which should be the starting point for your business. He also guides you through what he believes this should consist of in terms of a three-year vision while encouraging you to devise a one year plan to make this a reality.

Alongside Chris Barrow, Dental Business Coach and Co-founder of BKH, Arun will coach you through a range of milestones which will allow you to manage your plans on a daily, weekly and monthly basis so that you can prioritise your objectives. This will encourage you to develop a long-term strategy while staying on top of your finances.

This vakmentor episode will also show you how to look at your business’s prospects on a short-term basis by reviewing your daily tasks list while reviewing all achievements made both on a weekly and monthly basis to ensure that you’re on target.

Keeping your business on track is important and Arun will guide you through how to measure your key performance indicators (KPI’s) and review your targets.

If you want to learn how to manage your finances and put a strategy in place to improve your business’s finances, you won’t want to miss this vakmentor episode where Arun shares his expertise with you.

Why learn with vakmentor?

In each vakmentor episode you’ll find a variety of learning tools which will deepen your understanding of a topic. In these videos you’ll find keywords which provide more context to the important topics discussed within.

Each of the episodes also has Doo-its which will enhance what you’ve learnt through a series of activities which engage you with each module. Finally at the end of the episode you can test what you’ve learnt with a quiz so you can remember the new information in the long term.

Does this sound appealing to you? If you want to set up your own dental practice and would like to know more about how you can get your finances sorted while having a solid business strategy in place, why not dip your toes in and give vakmentor a try? Please visit www.vakmentor.com for your FREE trial.

Keeping your patients safe in your practice is one of the core obligations which we need to uphold as dental practitioners. But how compliant is your practice when it comes to radiation safety?

In the Radiation Protection episode on vakmentor, you’ll learn everything you need to know to keep updated with this topic. You’ll be guided through this episode by our expert speakers Jo Russell, Managing Director of Oracle – Practice Business Solutions and Yvonne Clark, Practice Manager at Oralon Dental.

Jo Russell has over 25 years of experience in dentistry and in helping practices implement health and safety policies, while Yvonne Clark has extensive experience in managing dental practices and developing staff. Together their combined knowledge will provide you with everything you need to know about radiation to ensure your practice stays safe.

Why watch this episode?

In this episode you’ll be shown how to take the necessary preparation to protect your practice from radiation. You’ll learn about the different types of radiation and their sources.

Want to know what roles each of your team members should be and what documentation is necessary to stay compliant, then this module is essential for you. Jo shares the important legislation you need to know as well as the importance of using radiographic equipment in a safe area.

Meanwhile, Yvonne will guide you through the importance of written protocols and her tips on keeping records and how to monitor radiation equipment.

Don’t miss Jo’s pearls of wisdom on quality assurance as she explains how you can minimise exposure of radiation to your patients and still get good results. You’ll also learn why regular audits are necessary as evidence that staff have been trained properly and know how to handle radiation.

Overall this episode will keep you compliant with the issues around radiation and how it should be used in practice. If you or your dental team want to stay on top of the protocols and procedures around radiation, this vakmentor episode is for you.

When you watch the vakmentor episode, you’ll find a series of keywords which will encourage you to engage with the content. The interactive Doo-its also provide you with a series of activities during each episode so you can put what you’ve learnt into practice, while the quiz at the end tests what you have learnt so that you can retain the information for longer.

If this sounds like the ideal solution to stay compliant while upskilling your team on the topic of radiation, then why not try vakmentor and start your learner journey today?

Go to www.vakmentor.com to start your FREE trial.