Replies to LegCo questions
LCQ7: Regulation and development of dental hygienists
Following is a question by the Professor Hon Joseph Lee and a written reply by
the Secretary for Food and Health, Dr Ko Wing-man, in the Legislative Council
today (February 22):
Question:
Under the Ancillary Dental Workers (Dental Hygienists) Regulations (Cap 156 sub.
leg. B) (the Regulations), the Dental Council of Hong Kong (the Dental Council)
is empowered, among other things, to handle matters on the enrolment and
regulation of dental hygienists and to maintain a roll of dental hygienists (the
roll). Regulation 3 of the Regulations provides that "[a]ny person who holds the
United Kingdom Minister of Health's Certificate of Proficiency in Oral Hygiene,
or who holds any other certificate or diploma which, in the opinion of the
Dental Council, is of an equivalent standard and has been gained following a
course of dental training extending over a period of not less than nine months,
may apply to the Dental Council for enrolment as a dental hygienist". Regarding
the regulation and development of dental hygienists, will the Government inform
this Council:
(1) whether it knows the current number of persons across the territory who have
fulfilled the qualifications required for enrolment as a dental hygienist as
specified in regulation 3 of the Regulations;
(2) as the Dental Council relayed to the authorities in 2013 that it had
encountered difficulties in vetting and approving applications for enrolment as
dental hygienists because the Certificate of Proficiency in Oral Hygiene
programme stated in regulation 3 of the Regulations had ceased to exist for a
long time, and that the United Kingdom Minister of Health was unable to provide
information relating to the contents and training of that programme, whether the
Government will review and amend that provision; if so, of the details; if not,
the reasons for that;
(3) as some members of the sector have revealed that the Dental Council was
unable to get in touch with a dental hygienist who was under complaint as the
latter's personal particulars on the roll were outdated, and the complaint was
eventually unsettled, whether the Government knows the number of complaints
against dental hygienists received by the Dental Council in the past five years,
with a breakdown by the contents of the complaints and the outcome of the
handling of such complaints, as well as the measures currently put in place by
the Dental Council to ensure the accuracy of the information in the roll; and
(4) given that while regulation 6 of the Regulations provides for the scope of
dental work that may be undertaken by dental hygienists, some members of the
sector have relayed that certain requirements in the provision are unclear and
have become obsolete, whether the Government will review and amend that
provision; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply:
President,
Dental hygienists are regulated under the Ancillary Dental Workers (Dental
Hygienists) Regulations (the Regulations)(Cap 156B), which stipulates the
regulatory framework of dental hygienists in terms of their enrolment, handling
of complaints and scope of work. The Dental Council of Hong Kong (DCHK) is the
statutory body responsible for regulating dental hygienists.
My consolidated reply to the four questions raised by the Professor Hon Joseph
Lee is as follows.
(1) and (2) Dental hygienists refer to persons who have met the qualifications
prescribed in regulation 3 of the Regulations and are admitted by DCHK for
enrolment as dental hygienists. At present, the two-year Higher Diploma
programme in Dental Hygiene offered by the HKU SPACE Community College in
collaboration with the Prince Philip Dental Hospital is a training course
recognised by DCHK. Graduates of the programme are required to enrol with DCHK
to be qualified to practise as dental hygienists in Hong Kong. Enrolment
applications from holders of other academic qualifications will be assessed by
DCHK on an individual basis. As at end January 2017, there were a total of 424
enrolled dental hygienists, amongst which 114 dental hygienists held non-local
academic qualifications.
(3) The complaint handling procedures adopted by DCHK for enrolled dental
hygienists are largely the same as those for registered dentists. According to
the existing procedures of DCHK, the Chairman of the Preliminary Investigation
Committee (PIC) will first consider complaints against dental hygienists. Unless
it appears to the Chairman that a complaint is frivolous or groundless and
should not be proceeded further, the Chairman will refer the case to PIC for
consideration. If PIC considers that there is a prima facie case after examining
the complaint received as well as the explanation of the dental hygienist being
complained of, it will refer the case to DCHK for an inquiry.
From 2012 to 2016, DCHK received a total of four complaints against dental
hygienists. Three of them were about the dental work undertaken by dental
hygienists and the other one involved service charges. The PIC Chairman had
examined the relevant information and concluded that the four cases were not
substantiated to be proceeded further. As a result, all four cases were
dismissed.
In addition, according to regulation 4 of the Regulations, the Registrar shall
maintain a roll in which the names and addresses of persons whom DCHK has
admitted as dental hygienists shall be recorded. Any enrolled dental hygienist
who alters his name or address shall notify the Registrar immediately of any
such alteration. The Registrar will update the information in the roll at the
earliest instance once notification is received.
DCHK will follow up on every complaint related to dental hygienists. If DCHK
fails to contact the dental hygienist concerned based on the personal
information in the roll, DCHK will contact the complainant for further
information or the relevant registered dentist for appropriate follow up as
necessary.
(4) According to regulation 6 of the Regulations, a dental hygienist must carry
out dental work in accordance with the directions of a registered dentist. A
dental hygienist only undertakes dental work upon patients who have first been
examined by a registered dentist and carries out dental work according to the
treatment prescribed by the dentist. The scope of work of a dental hygienist, as
stipulated in the Regulations, includes the cleaning and scaling of teeth,
exposure of x-ray films orally and giving of advice on matters relating to
dental hygiene in accordance with the directions of a registered dentist.
To ensure the sustainable development of our healthcare system, the Government
is conducting a strategic review on healthcare manpower planning and
professional development in Hong Kong (the Strategic Review), which aims to
formulate recommendations on the ways to meet the projected demand for
healthcare manpower and foster professional development. The Strategic Review
covers 13 healthcare disciplines which are subject to statutory regulation,
including dental hygienists.
Regarding the regulatory regimes for healthcare professions, the Strategic
Review covers the functions of statutory regulatory bodies, complaint
investigation and disciplinary inquiry mechanism as well as training and
development. The regulation of dental hygienists by DCHK (including scope of
work) is included in the Strategic Review.
The Government has all along been maintaining communication with DCHK on the
regulation of dentists and dental hygienists. The Government has earlier
received proposals from DCHK on ways to improve the enrolment and regulation of
dental hygienists. The Government will also meet with the dental hygienists
profession to listen to their views on the manpower planning, professional
development and regulation of the profession.
We expect that the report of the Strategic Review will be published in the first
half of 2017. We will take forward its recommendations upon consultation with
stakeholders.
Ends/Wednesday, February 22, 2017
Issued at HKT 15:21
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