Lessons learnt from setting up a UK urgent dental care centre during the COVID-19 pandemic: The importance of adaptation and collaboration in urgent care.

摘要

When the COVID-19 pandemic led to the closure of general dental practices throughout the UK on 23 March 2020, Newcastle Dental Hospital became a regional in-hours urgent dental care hub treating ‘hot’ (COVID-19 positive, self-isolating), ‘warm’ (shielding, vulnerable) and ‘cold’ (other) patients. It provided urgent dental care to over 3,000 patients in the first 6 weeks. With no other urgent dental care centres being operational until 15 April, the hospital was the sole care provider (both during normal working hours and out of hours) to a population of over 3 million for more than 3 weeks. Consideration of staffing requirements, logistics, staff wellbeing, personal protective equipment, referral pathways, clinic setup and management of urgent dental conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic are discussed along with the challenges faced. March 2020 brought about a dramatic change in dentistry in the UK owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. By 23 March, all routine dental treatment had stopped at Newcastle Dental Hospital (NDH). The hospital has a well established dental emergency clinic offering a walk-in service for adults as well as an emergency service for children, with both operating during office hours (Monday to Friday). The region has an out-of-hours service that covers evenings and weekends. The urgent dental care centre (UDCC) at NDH was adapted to incorporate both of these services, enabling us to provide a multidisciplinary seven-day service to treat urgent and emergency dental problems while reducing patient footfall so as to reduce the risk of virus transmission. Following the cessation of primary care dentistry, our dental emergency clinic was the only UDCC in North East England and north Cumbria for almost a month until other UDCCs were established.