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Guy's and St Thomas'

NHS Foundation Trust

Information for New Patients about Staff and Student Care at the Dental Institute Dental

Services
The Dental Hospital at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust is part of the Dental Institute which brings together
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust with King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College
London.

The Dental Hospital has responsibility for the training and education of dental undergraduates, postgraduates and other
professional groups supporting dentistry. To support their training, routine dental care may be provided by our dental
students or trainee dental hygienists. If this is the case, the consultant in charge of the clinic will assess your condition
and decide whether you are suitable to have your dental care managed by a trainee. You will then be asked if you wish
to receive treatment by a student. If you decide not to accept the offer of treatment by a student, there is a possibility
that the hospital will not be able to offer you non-specialist dental care.
Dental clinics are situated either in Tower Wing at Guy’s Hospital or the Dental Polyclinic at St Thomas’ Hospital.
The location of your clinic will be clearly stated in your appointment letter. Please check carefully which hospital you
are due to attend.

Staff Clinics

The Dental Hospital staff clinics provide only highly specialised opinion and treatments, which cannot otherwise be
provided in general or community dental practices.

Student Clinics

The hospital offers the opportunity for general dental care by students. Your treatment may be provided by, a number of
dental students, depending on the treatment needs. In order to qualify for this service, you cannot be undergoing Dental
treatment elsewhere or be registered with a General Dental Practitioner in the community. The service is accessed via
booking and attending an assessment clinic appointment. After the initial appointment you will be informed whether
treatment will be available in the student clinics. All student care is provided under close supervision from senior dental
staff

New Patients to the Dental Hospital

Please note all new appointments are for initial assessment only. You will need to be prepared to spend up to 3 hours or
more for ail investigations to be earned out. You will then be advised whether treatment can be offered. You may
therefore wish to bring some reading material with you to ease the wait.

Medical History

The aim of your first appointment is to make a provisional diagnosis of your condition. Hence it is essential for us to
take a thorough history of your problem as well as documenting your medical history. Please bring with you any
information regarding your medical history that

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