To help promote a flexible and sustainable workforce in dentistry, it is necessary to access accurate and timely data about the structure and nature of the evolving dental team. This paper considers the results and learning from a region-wide dental workforce survey conducted in one area of Health Education England and how the team has changed since the last survey a decade earlier. A mixed-methods approach comprised two phases. In Phase 1 a customised workforce questionnaire was sent to all dental practices registered with the Care Quality Commission in the North East of England and North Cumbria in March 2016. Findings then informed Phase 2, a regional symposium held in October 2016, where interactive workshops generated qualitative data that elaborated on factors influencing workforce development. Of 431 primary dental care practices identified, 228 questionnaires were returned - a 53% response rate. The largest professional groups were dental nurses (n = 1269, 53% by headcount; 50% of fte) and dentists (34% by headcount; 42% by fte), though there had been increases in numbers of all staff groups over the decade, which was most marked for dental therapists (from 1 per 39 dentists to 1 per 8 dentists). The dental team predominantly fell into ‘younger’ age groups (< 46 years age), with evidence of a significant increase in the number of dentists reporting part-time working in a practice since the last survey. Around one third of dental practices reported employing dental nurses with additional skills (n = 74, 32.5%) or dental therapists (n = 73, 32%), and nearly half employed a dental hygienist (n = 104, 46%). However, there was considerable variability in whether these staff actually carried out the range of skills within their scope of practice. Factors shaping workforce development were identified as, the national context, loss of expertise, patients’ health needs and expectations, surgery premises and financial constraints. The composition and work patterns of the primary care dental workforce have changed markedly over the last decade, though utilisation of skill-mix continues to be constrained. Consideration of factors determining career progression of dentists and dental care professionals is needed to optimise a sustainable future workforce.

中文翻译：

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牙科劳动力的发展和保留：英格兰地区劳动力调查和座谈会的调查结果

为了帮助促进牙科领域灵活而可持续的劳动力，有必要获取有关不断发展的牙科团队的结构和性质的准确及时的数据。本文考虑了在英格兰健康教育的一个地区进行的一项地区性牙科劳动力调查的结果和学习，以及该团队自十年前的上次调查以来的变化。混合方法方法包括两个阶段。在第1阶段中，向2016年3月在英格兰东北部和北坎布里亚郡的护理质量委员会注册的所有牙科诊所发送了一份定制的劳动力调查表。调查结果随后通知了第2阶段，即2016年10月举行的区域性座谈会，在该座谈会上举办了互动研讨会定性数据，详细说明影响劳动力发展的因素。在确定的431种基本牙科护理实践中，返回了228份问卷-回复率为53％。最大的专业群体是牙科护士（n = 1269，占总人数的53％；占全职员工的50％）和牙医（占总人数的34％；占全职员工的42％），尽管十年来所有工作人员的数量都有所增加，这对牙科治疗师而言最为明显（从每39名牙医中的1名到每8名牙医中的1名）。牙科团队主要属于“年轻”年龄组（<46岁），有证据表明自上次调查以来报告从事兼职工作的牙医数量显着增加。大约三分之一的牙科诊所报告说，他们雇用了具有其他技能的牙科护士（n = 74，32.5％）或牙科治疗师（n = 73，32％），近一半雇用了牙科保健师（n = 104，46％）。然而，这些员工是否在他们的执业范围内实际执行了各种技能，差异很大。确定了影响劳动力发展的因素，包括国情，专业知识的缺失，患者的健康需求和期望，手术场所和财务限制。在过去的十年中，尽管技能组合的使用仍然受到限制，但初级保健牙科劳动力的组成和工作模式已发生了显着变化。需要考虑决定牙医和牙科保健专业人员职业发展的因素，以优化可持续的未来劳动力。手术前提和财务限制。在过去的十年中，尽管技能组合的使用仍然受到限制，但初级保健牙科劳动力的组成和工作模式已发生了显着变化。需要考虑决定牙医和牙科保健专业人员职业发展的因素，以优化可持续的未来劳动力。手术前提和财务限制。在过去的十年中，尽管技能组合的使用仍然受到限制，但初级保健牙科劳动力的组成和工作模式已发生了显着变化。需要考虑决定牙医和牙科保健专业人员职业发展的因素，以优化可持续的未来劳动力。