DentaltownUK July 2018 - 52

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First Dental Practices Sign Up for 1,000 Smiles Appeal
The first dental practices have been signing up for
the Together Dental 1,000 Smiles Appeal to raise vital
funds for dental charities Bridge2Aid and Dentaid.
The charities launched the appeal in a bid to
encourage 1,000 dental practices and companies to
each raise £100. All the money will be shared equally
between Bridge2Aid and Dentaid to help the charities
provide essential dental treatment and oral health
education programmes in some of the poorest and
most remote communities in the world.
First to sign up was High Green Dental Practice
in Sheffield, which got its fundraising off to a great
start with a cake sale, raffle and a 'Baby McGarry'
sweepstake.
This will be followed by a Colour Run in July
when the team will run a 5K obstacle course and get
covered in colour along the way. All the events have
been generously supported by patients, staff at the
practice and local businesses.
'We were aware of Dentaid & Bridge2Aid as
individual charities, but the 1000 Smiles Campaign
gave us the perfect opportunity to support both', said
dentist Dr Gemma McGarry. '£100 does not seem
like a lot of money but it can make an enormous
difference-for example, pay for 40 Cambodian
children to attend the Healthy Kids programme,
which includes dental treatment and oral health
education. I hope we can inspire other practices to get
involved, as it has been fun to get together as a team
and come up with fundraising events. So far, we have
a bake sale, colour obstacle run, a baby sweepstakes
and are currently selling raffle tickets'.

Other 1,000 Smiles fundraising ideas include a
sponsored hike in the Peak District by Hayers Dental
Surgery in Willenhall, the sale of a rocking horse chair
by retired dentist Dr Bryan Osborn and a cake bake
from Splash Orthodontics in Hove.
'The great thing about this appeal is that
dental practices are able to come up with their own
fundraising ideas to bring their teams and their
communities closer together', said Dentaid CEO Andy
Evans. 'It's brilliant that we already have some dental
practices getting behind the appeal and we hope more
will be inspired to join and raise £100'.
Chief executive of Bridge2Aid Shaenna
Loughnane added: 'We're hoping that this campaign
will show how great the UK dental community is.
Not only will it allow the work of our two charities
to continue, but raising this money together will
strengthen teams and hopefully allow them to have
some fun. There is a lot of need in the world, but
together we are stronger, and together we can all pull
together to make a difference'.
The Together Dental project is a joint fundraising
campaign between Dentaid and Bridge2Aid,
which will use the funds to expand their dental
health projects in communities where there is
insufficient access to dental care. By running training
programmes, oral health initiatives and supporting
dental professionals overseas, the charities help many
people to access safe, sustainable dental care.
To sign up for the Together Dental 1000 Smiles
Appeal visit togetherdental.org/smiles/ or email
info@togetherdental.org. ■

A Simpler and Automated Way to Switch Plan Provider
Switching dental plan patients from one provider to another is about to become simpler and automated.
New rules and an accreditation scheme for organisations processing third party direct debits means
dental plan providers will soon have to utilise the 'bulk change' process if a practice wishes to switch its
plan administration from one provider to another. The bulk change process allows for direct debits to be
transferred automatically 'in the background' from one provider to another, without patients having to sign
a new direct debit instruction, making life simpler and more convenient for everyone involved. Patient Plan
Direct is the first plan provider to obtain accreditation under the new rules.
Simon Reynolds, commercial director at Patient Plan Direct, comments: 'We welcome these changes,
which create a competitively fair market and affords practices the freedom of choice to decide which
provider to work with, without being put off by a previously cumbersome switching process'.
For more information visit: patientplandirect.co.uk/simpleswitch. ■

SUMMER 2018 // dentaltownuk.com

http://www.togetherdental.org/smiles/ http://patientplandirect.co.uk/simpleswitch http://www.dentaltownuk.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DentaltownUK July 2018