Dental Nurse Coordination Role

The dental nurse coordination role supports meeting P 3.9. Dental nurses should be able to assist patients and colleagues and contribute to safe systems while working within their scope of practice.

Oral health affects nutrition, diabetes, dementia, medicines, safeguarding, care-home support, smoking, alcohol, mental health and disability. Dental services alone cannot address all these needs, so coordination with other health and social care services is necessary.

What to notice in practice

• Follow-up: establish what the patient or colleague needs next, then hand over or escalate clearly.
• Liaison: confirm required next steps and pass information to the appropriate person or team.
• Signposting: direct patients or carers to the correct service or resource when needed.
• Accessible information: check whether information and referral processes allow the patient fair access to care.
• Appointment planning: coordinate timing and preparations to support attendance and effective care.

Dental nurses contribute by using clear handover, sharing information within consent limits, liaising with carers, preparing patients for appointments and ensuring reliable follow-up.

Good practice is practical and observable: prepare, listen to patients and colleagues, check understanding, hand over clearly, and report recurring problems so they can be fixed at practice level.

Research and system context

Collaboration turns oral health from an isolated dental issue into part of joined-up care for patients and communities.