Trial of a new prison service triage system

Dental care professionals working in the prison services have a complex array of different and often difficult situations to deal with beyond the usual general dental practice environment. The obvious concern, which jumps to mind, is that of security. Perhaps unsurprisingly security and regulation of prisoner movement can significantly impact the provision of dental care. Prisoners often require supervision to appointments and the extensive checks on instruments, which need to be carried out before and after clinics, can result in actual treatment time being significantly reduced. This tied with other factors, such as complicated healthcare needs and the high turnover of prisoners, has resulted in a group of patients with unmet healthcare needs. According to the Department of Health, ‘The amount of untreated dental disease amongst all prisoners is approximately four times greater than the level found in the general population coming from similar backgrounds’.