Senior Restorative Dental Therapist

As a Senior Dental hygienist / therapist within the Restorative dental department you will help lead and deliver the dental related preventative services for the Regional Head & Neck Cancer patients treated within the outpatient department and ward. This will involve care of this patient group before, during and after their cancer treatment. This will include the delivery of pre treatment care to the prescription of the consultants within the department including preventive advice, periodontal treatment, restoration placement and impression taking. As a Senior Dental hygienist / Dental therapist you will lead the Restorative oral health education clinics.

Main duties of the job

You will help provide services for complex multidisciplinary patients requiring care from restorative dentistry working with orthodontic and maxillofacial colleagues in relation to their planning, treatment delivery and maintenance. This will involve treatment of patients with complex hypodontia, adult cleft lip and palate and facial trauma who receive complex restorative dental care and dental implant based rehabilitation.

Working for our organisation

University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust is one of the largest and most modern in the country. Based across two sites, Royal Stoke in Stoke-on-Trent and County Hospital in Stafford, we are proud to serve around three million people and we're highly regarded for our facilities, teaching and research. We are the specialist centre for major trauma for the North Midlands and North Wales.

All of our employees make a valuable contribution regardless of role here at UHNM and we are proud of our wide range of development packages aimed at ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to fulfil their true potential.

UHNM create and encourage a culture of inclusion, providing equal opportunities for career development that are fair and transparent. We are committed to being a diverse and inclusive employer and foster a culture in which all staff feel valued and respected. In return we ask all of our employees to make a commitment to the values, co-creator by or staff, patients and carers, and that unite us as a Trust.

At University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust we know that investing in, supporting and developing our staff has a direct impact on the quality of care that we deliver. Our employees are as important as our patients and the population that we serve.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To maintain Continuing Professional Development in line with the General Dental Council Regulations, in order to fulfil personal training needs.
• To be a member of British Association of Dental Hygienists and Dental Therapists
• To carry out dental treatment under prescription from the Restorative Consultants
• Provide dental hygiene care to a wide range of patients
• Manage Head and neck cancer patients and their relatives/ carers at various stages of their treatment pathway including counselling patients on the dental effects of their recent diagnosis and treatment
• Obtain a detailed dental history from patients and evaluate their medical history
• Carry out a clinical examination within their competence
• Complete periodontal examination and charting and use indices to screen and monitor periodontal disease
• Diagnose and treatment plan within their competence
• Prescribe radiographs
• Interpret various film views used in the department
• Plan the delivery of care for patients
• Provide preventive oral care to patients and liaise with dentists over the treatment of caries, periodontal disease and tooth wear
• Undertake supragingival and subgingival scaling and root surface debridement using manual and powered instruments
• Use appropriate anti-microbial therapy to manage plaque related diseases
• Adjust restored surfaces in relation to periodontal treatment
• Apply topical treatments and fissure sealants
• Give patients advice on how to stop smoking
• Take intra and extra-oral photographs
• Give infiltration and inferior dental block analgesia
• Place temporary dressings and re- cement crowns with temporary cement
• Take impressions
• Care of implants and treatment of peri-implant tissues
• Identify anatomical features, recognise abnormalities and interpret common pathology
• Carry out oral cancer screening
• If necessary, refer patients to other healthcare professionals
• Keep full, accurate and contemporaneous patient records
• If working on prescription, vary the detail but not the direction of the prescription according to patient needs. For example, the number of surfaces to be restored or the material to be used.
• Carry out direct restorations on primary and secondary teeth
• Carry out pulpotomies on primary teeth
• Extract primary teeth
• Place pre-formed crowns on primary teeth
• Co-ordinate/ lead team delivering ‘Restorative Oral Health Education’ (ROHE) for the departments Head and Neck Cancer patients on the ward and related departments.
• Ensure equipment used is in suitable working condition and raise any concerns.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Degree or Diploma in Dental Hygiene & Therapy BSc
• General Dental Council (GDC) Registration
• Portfolio of certified /accredited professional development activity undertaken in relevant areas

Experience

• Must have at least 4 years post qualifying experience in dentistry.
• Evidence of working with medically compromised patients, children and patients with learning disabilities
• Experience of treating periodontal patients.
• Experience of Head and Neck oncology patients

Skills and Knowledge

• Knowledge of confidentiality / data protection act
• Excellent communication skills both verbal & written
• Ability to prioritise appropriately and work with minimal supervision
• Understanding of policies & procedures
• Knowledge of hospital / practice computer systems
• Take responsibility & accountability for delivering their agreed objectives
• Evidence of leadership within a team
• Organisational experience & forward planningAbility to adapt to change
• Flexibility of working hours

Important information about your application

• All correspondence will be sent to you via the email address you applied from. Please ensure you check your emails regularly.
• References - please ensure you provide email addresses for all referees for the last three years of employment.
• We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from everyone regardless of ethnicity, disability, gender, age, faith or sexual orientation. Appointment will be based on merit alone.
• Flexible working will be considered in line with Trust policies
• New recruits are required to pay for their Disclosure and Barring Service check (and admin fee) prior to starting if the role requires a DBS check.

University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) has been awarded the Gold Award for proudly supporting those who serve. We actively encourage applications from the Armed Forces community

If you obtained your qualifications overseas, you will be required to provide an official government translation through ECCTIS (formerly known as NARIC). Please note, this is in addition to any professional registration requirements and not a replacement for your qualifications.

If you are currently in the UK on a visa, you must have at least six months remaining on your visa at the time of your start date to ensure sufficient time for the operational and training process associated with the role. The requirement of at least six months remaining on your visa does not apply to a Skilled Worker Visa, as a new Skilled Worker Visa would be required for a new role.

In line with the change of Immigration rules on 8th January 2026 if you require Sponsorship through the Skilled Worker Visa you must be able to provide B2 English evidence before a Certificate of Sponsorship can be issued.

Visa eligibility notice:

• Skilled Worker visas cannot currently be issued to Afghan nationals.
• Study visas cannot currently be issued to nationals of Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar or Sudan.
  As a result, we are unable to progress applications requiring sponsorship under these routes.

UHNM supports the responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to assist in preparing your supporting statement. However, we reserve the right to reject applications where AI has been used in a misleading manner, for example, by implying experience or understanding that the applicant does not possess or where its use is excessive or unfair. If AI has been used to support your application, you must declare this within your submission.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.