Under pressure to consider a PDS+ Agreement ?

"We advise dentists to think very carefully and seek advice before taking on one of these contracts as the dangers of breach are rife, and the consequences of breach may be very damaging to practices" John Milne chair of the General Dental Practice Committee

What was formerly the so called the 'Warburton contract' was published as a final version last November and amongst other intended provisions seeks to create improved access to dentists and in doing so allows PCTs to count the number of new patients; the amount of work that dentists do and the quality and service of treatment to patients as factors of remuneration.

It is certainly the considered view of the majority of advisers that the PDS+ is far from suitable for a basic family dental practice.

There is for instance a considerable amount of bureaucracy and massive administrative burdens; the payment provisions are complex; at the tender stage one cannot know how funding is to be allocated ~ the Key Performance Indicators which form part of the remuneration calculations account for about 30% of the payments; there are indemnity provisions in favour of the PCT; how long is it intended to last ? (5 years or more) in addition the provisions for early termination are regarded by many as extremely draconian, again totally in favour of the PCT and all this is a brief overview.

However the PCT cannot impose the PDS+ on practitioners and on the basis of these very brief observations dentists especially 'normal family dentists' should not enter in to such an Agreement without taking a great deal of time to consider all the provisions and also to obtain sound reliable advice.

Does your PCT want UDA clawback discussions ?

Under target and feeling under threat ?

A shortfall in UDAs is something that on many occasions such as illness or the time taken to replace an associate just cannot be avoided - but what can you do to help yourself ahead of a meeting with the PCT representative, who frequently might not be the same person with whom you have discussed issues and even negotiated previous shortfalls in the past.

First of all get together any correspondence which you have had from the PCT since 2006 - the representative may not bring the PCT's file with them so be prepared yourself. The papers you have, or even your own notes of previous such meetings, might clearly show how and when the shortfall began and how and by when it was previously anticipated to be resolved or reviewed. It is important that you know whether the situation is improving or continuing to decline now.

You yourself also have to put together your own comprehensive review and submission to the PCT representative for maintaining the current level of UDAs in your Practice -make bullet points regarding the recent performances of UDAs and how you would propose to get the level back up to target within the next few months.

Putting forward a positive solution for the situation to the PCT yourself with, say, a six month review extension might just give you the time to significantly reduce the UDAs and it also shows that you are both concerned and have thought how matters might best be effectively resolved for all concerned.

This method has worked for clients in such situations and if I can help at all then please contact me.

New Companies House Forms!!!!

As the last remaining provisions of the Companies Act 2006 have come into force Companies House has issued a whole range of new forms.

These include new forms to notify the appointment, termination of appointment or change of details of a director or secretary if the relevant date of appointment, termination or change of details is on or after 1st October 2009.

Please see the forms numbered AP01, AP02, AP03, AP04, TM01, TM02, CH01 and so on for further details.

Stephen Knowles

Rising near you ? - Dr Warburton bakes up a draft dental access contract

Several PCT's across the country including the north east, Lincolnshire and Devon appear to have already released a version of the draft contract developed by the dental access team at the Department of Health, led by Dr Mike Warburton,as part of their tendering proces for new services with practitioners .

The best advice at present has to be not to sign such contract but to take advice from the BDA Business Team along with that of your lawyer.

According to Barry Cockcroft the access team asked the NHS to share the draft with stakeholders 'in order to get feedback but also to point out that the version they have at the moment is not the final version'. Though he added 'We intend to robustly pilot potential changes with existing providers'.

Dr John Milne, chair of the BDA's General Dental Practice Committee, has made it clear that the version that they have seen is, in the opinion of the BDA, not fit for purpose and they are warning members not to sign it in its current form.

Whilst the Dental Access Programme is intended to ensure that both additional new patients are seen and quality is maintained it also includes provision within the procurement for extended hours. It is understood to also enable the PCT to effectively micro manage a practice - from opening hours to the recall intervals for patients.

The anxiety overall is that this will lead to the measure of dental performance becoming a mix of quality, access and UDA measurements. This new focus does not sit well with the demands of UDAs at present upon dentists nor does it appear to retain significant dentist discretion.

Rumours also circulate that the new draft contract will cement the complete withdrawl by the PCT of a dentists ownership of the goodwill of their practice and also contains no immediate right to continue a contract once the indicated five year term comes to an end, whatever success may have been achieved.

It would appear that for some the upheavals of 2006 are just about to be re-visited.

I would be delighted to hear from any practitioners with their experiences of a draft dental access contract and also the approaches from or dealings with their PCTs regarding the new draft contracts.

Age Discrimination Update

The High Court has just thrown out a challenge to the provisions of The Employment Equality (Age) Regulations which permit an employer to dismiss an employee on the grounds of retirement at 65. The Court found the provisions were permissible as a wide margin was to be afforded to the Government in formulating social policy.

However the Government is set to review the effect of this provision in 2010 (one year earlier than originally indicated). Therefore the Regulations may be the subject of change next year.

Please therefore keep reviewing the Burn & Company website for further employment law developments.

Stephen Knowles

What you need to know about redundancy pay

The Government recently announced that the limit on a week's redundancy pay would increase from £350 to £380. We now know that the increase will come into force on 1st October 2009. Whilst this is some help for those continuing to lose their jobs in the current recession the Government has also made it clear that this limit will remain until 1st February 2011.

Stephen Knowles

The Government has just announced the creation of a new Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. (BIS). This is created by the merger of the existing Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform with the Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills.

Whilst BIS seems more "catchy" than BERR is it just me or does DTI still seem the best acronym of all????

Stephen Knowles