Highland Dentist Cleared For Work After Poor Hygiene Ban
A Highland based dentist has been given the go-ahead to return to work after serving a ban for poor hygiene practices.
A Highland based dentist has been given the go-ahead to return to work after serving a ban for poor hygiene practices.
Andre Basson was suspended for six months in March after a General Dental Council panel ruled he was putting the safety of patients and colleagues at risk.
Basson failed to wash his hands or wear gloves and other protective garments at The Keep dental practice on Castle Wynd, Inverness.
Two nurses told the GDC they had never seen him use an alcohol hand rub between dealing with patients.
Basson also re-used pieces of dental kit that should have thrown out and failed to decontaminate other piece of equipment
According to one dental nurse he removed an acrylic bur (cutter) from the 'dirty box', cleaned it with an alcohol wipe, then then put the bur back into storage.
Basson earned £245,000 last year, making him one of the highest earning dentists in Scotland.
He also received £175,000 as part of a publicly-funded initiative aimed at addressing a shortage of dental professionals in the north.
Earlier this year NHS Highland confirmed they were taking steps to recoup the grant.
The GDC found Basson's fitness to practise is still impaired at a review hearing but concluded he should be given the chance to practice under supervision in order to complete his remediation.
The South-African dentist accepted that he 'placed financial concerns before the safety and wellbeing of staff and patients', and expressed regret for his actions.
The latest GDC ruling said: 'Your standards of personal hygiene in the clinical setting were poor, in that you did not wash your hands when required to do so, that you did not wear gloves when appropriate and that you did not wear suitable clinical clothes in the clinical areas of the practice.
'The Professional Conduct Committee considered that you willfully disregarded the safety of your staff and patients, and that your actions were an abdication of your responsibilities as a dental professional.'
But the dentist had submitted evidence to the panel of 'fundamental changes' to his practice, including the appointment of a registered dental nurse to assist training and the progression of induction programmes for the dental team.
'The Committee has been impressed by the large amount of work you have done and the depth of your reflections into your shortcomings,' the ruling added.
Basson will only be allowed to practice during the next 12 months under strict conditions imposed by the GDC and listed on the Dentists' Register.
He must work on a personal development plan to address his deficiencies in practice management and infection control, and must remain under the watch of a supervisor nominated by himself and agreed to by the GDC.
The panel ruled Basson 'must not engage in single-handed dental practice', and his case will be reviewed shortly before the end of the conditional period when the GDC will again consider his fitness to practise.
Earlier this year another dentist who worked at The Keep Practice was reprimanded by the GDC for failures of care relating to 10 patients between July 2011 and February 2013.
Benat De Miguel, now practicing in Edinburgh, admitted a series of charges including failing to monitor the periodontal treatment of a number of patients suffering from gum disease and had a string of conditions imposed on him for 12 months.