GDC welcomes powers for dental hygienists and therapists to supply and administer medicines

The legislation will enable dental hygienists and therapists across the UK to legally supply and administer specific prescription-only medicines under an exemption mechanism without needing a dentist’s prescription, a patient-specific direction or a patient group direction.

While specified medicines can legally be supplied and administered under exemptions, the GDC expects dental hygienists and dental therapists to undertake the appropriate training to ensure they are competent to use this mechanism. There is no obligation for dental hygienists and therapists to administer and supply these medicines under exemptions, and many of them may wish to continue to rely on existing mechanisms in their work instead.