Teeth Whitening

[tanfastic]

Just a heads up to all, I have spent most of the morning looking into this again ( as some of you are aware I strongly disagree with illegal teeth whitening practices) but I am REALLY confused now. I firstly looked at the toothpolice FB page up and read loads of their posts, then I came across another page that is all for Teeth Whitening, and there seems to be a lot of rivalry and even bullying tactics going on on these pages. Not very professional. I then phoned the Trading Standards to make sure that they are still sticking with the EU Directives of 2001 and 2011( stating that it is a Cosmetic procedure, not a Dentistry procedure), they could not tell me definitively but will call me back as I was transferred to CAB and they did not want to advise me incorrectly. They gave me the number for the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, they cant help unless I am complaining about a service. Then I called the GDC and the gentleman was polite but very vague about the law as of today, he kept advising me of their " stance" on the matter but would not tell me if would be breaking the law if I chose to take up teeth whitening. He advised me to go and see a lawyer.The GDC state that Teeth Whitening is a Detistry Procedure and has to be carried out by a ental Professional, The EU state that it is a Cosmetic Procedure and can be carried out by non dental professionals as long as it is within the legal chemical parameters.

So after 3 hours I still am no closer to the truth, just more confused. I sympathise with anyone wanting to take up Teeth Whitening and offering it as a service, it seems that they will take your money to train you, the insurers will take your money for insurance but if things go wrong you are on your own and your fate relies on the Judge of the day to say if you were offering an illegal service or not.

https://www.facebook.com/StampOutIllegalToothWhitening?group_id=0#!/StampOutIllegalToothWhitening


https://www.facebook.com/groups/526465187376209/?fref=ts

Above are the links to the FB groups, read up for yourselves they are both full of information some helpful, some not but at least you can then make a decision as to whether it is for you or not, as well as having the info on how to report illegal practices.

 

[tanfastic]

I have just received this e-mail from the GDC and have copied and pasted it for you, it has links to the prosecutions already carried out. Scary....

Good Afternoon,


Thank you for your call earlier.


The practice of dentistry is limited to GDC registrants. It is the Council’s view that applying materials and carrying out procedures designed to improve the aesthetic appearance of teeth amounts to the practice of dentistry. So too does the giving of clinical advice about such procedures. Therefore all tooth whitening procedures, including bleach and laser treatment, are seen as the practice of dentistry by the General Dental Council.



It is our position that tooth whitening procedures may only be undertaken by GDC registrants; specifically dentists, dental hygienists or dental therapists working to a dentist’s prescription. We consider tooth whitening procedures being carried out by anybody else as illegal practise.



We bring criminal prosecutions for the illegal practice of dentistry by non-registered companies and individuals. Further details are set out at:

GDC successfully prosecutes tooth whitening company

http://www.gdc-uk.org/newsandpublic...poses-fine-for-illegal-tooth-whitening-.aspx; and

Defendant pleads guilty in tooth whitening case



For further information on tooth whitening please check the following area of our website: Tooth whitening Q & As

and our tooth whitening fact sheet at: http://www.gdc-uk.org/membersofpubl...ents/tooth whitening fact sheet june 2012.pdf



I hope this information is of assistance.



Kind regards,



Robert Miller

Customer Advice and Information Officer

General Dental Council



Telephone: +44 (0)20 7344 3735


Still makes me wonder why the EU Directive states that it is legal?

Two different laws? WHich one is going get you a Criminal Record or not, depends on the Judge

 

[squidgernetball]

Well done for all the research! What a mine field. I decided that if I wanted my teeth whitened I would got to a dentist, and as such, couldn't recommend any different to my clients. I feel great sympathy for anyone caught out financially by this!

 

[angelina221]

The company I trained with said there was a difference between tooth whitening and teeth whitening and, you could advertise one and not the other. I can't find any information about this on the net.
This company was also sending out illegal products after the law changed.
I emailed the company before my training about the change in law and whether is was legal and I was told that it was. I still have the emails.
As I said, I haven't touched my kit except to check the contents. I didn't have enough items in there to do the amount of treatments that they said I would be able to do.
I mentioned to the company that I only had 5 mouth retractors so I wouldn't have enough to do the 40 treatments that they said I would get in my kit.
They told me to wash the retractors!!

 

[Steph86]

How about this ... If your dentist started saying "Trained in facials and shellacs too" would you not think they were a cowboy?

I'd never go to any beauty therapist who said she could whiten my teeth, slim me down, Botox me and massage me. I'd have better luck with a cowboy!

I agree completly... A local dentist offers spray tans-by their staff! Who have trained (my friend works there) just a little odd in my opinion "oh I am just going to the dentist for a tan?!" But at least it itsn't illegal!

Am I right in thinking it it ok for home whitening kits for you to do yourself?

And is the laser/uv/light whitening now illegal too? Is it only trays?

I had a look into it, but thankfully I did a little more research before I parted with any money and realised the insurance the course comes with wasn't worth the paper it was written on if something was to go wrong! X

 

[tanfastic]

To be honest it is all a big mess, if the authorities don't even know if it is legal or not, what chance do we stand!!!! Also all these prosecutions that the GDC keep on about don't mention that these people were prosecuted for also carrying out Dentistry, not JUST teeth whitening. According to the GDC teeth whitening is Dentistry, According to the EU it is a Cosmetic treatment. The EU Ruling is newer than the Law the GDC quotes ( 17 years newer)

The GDC state that any treatment requiring you to pass their lips and carry out a procedure in the mouth is a form of Dentistry, how come you dont get your tongue pearced at the dentists then?, How come Tooth Gems are not illegal to do outside a dentists office? The mind boggles.


If anyone wants to offer teeth whitening I would suggest that they do a LOT of research, get legal advice and thoroughly check out the companies that are willing to offer insurance. The other option is to go into patnership with a Dentist ( The dentist has to be the majority shareholder of your LTD company and as far as I can understand from all the conflicting information you will be fine.) A GDC number makes all your worries disappear if you are dentist or not! Where in the universe does that make sense?

Just another unregulated industry, lets hope the cowboys are all closed down soon and leave only the professionals doing the job.

Dentists are certainly not that squeaky clean either. By law ( ammended October 2012 I believe) they are not allowed to use any higher than 6% Peroxide but I know for a fact that some use over 30%, the highest I have heard of is 36%. If the practice of Teeth Whitening is to be cleaned up it should be done across the board. NO MORE ILLEGAL TEETH WHITENING. The only problem is that anything under 1% peroxide falls within that grey area which is the confusing bit.

 

[liddrose]

Bev

I know many techs that have tried to get their money back via trading standards and credit cards, with no luck. These companies know the techs do not have the resources to take them to court.

Is there something else you would like the techs to do Bev?

If techs complain or even question training, the companies are threatening them with legal action to silence them.

 

[sjmand]

The tooth whitening police seem to have gone all quiet on this thread!!!

 

[toothpolice]

Hi All,

just wanted to say that i've not gone quiet, I've not had a chance to be on here as I work full time, have been away for the weekend and obviously deal with my facebook group in the evenings.. alongside trying to have a homelife.

Anyway, to answer some questions...

Tooth whitening is not classed as cosmetic, its classed as a cosmetic dental procedure.
It is the practice of dentistry which matters alongside the gel concentration. Examining a patients teeth to decide if they can have whitening is an act of dentistry in itself.
The GDC are not only there to regulate registered dentists, they are there purely to protect the public and they do take action against people that aren't dentists as well as registered dentists and dental professionals.

Some technicians have very successfully received refunds, it is a matter of perseverance and getting your letters of complaint exactly right. There is help available for anyone that needs it and a good solicitor would help build your case for a refund should it be needed.

Dentists can quite legally carry out botox and fillers because they've spent 5 years studying facial muscles etc and the comment that Drs are up in arms about it, doesn't quite tie in with the biggest training course in facial aesthetics being run by... Drs!

I'm sure they'd rather a Dentist was doing the botox than a beautician with no medical training. Botox can be used very successfully in treating some dental disorders too and has been used this way for a very long time.
With regards to insurance, i'm pretty certain that Hamilton Frasier do NOT insure anyone other than a professional to perform tooth whitening. This is stated on the Cosmetica website.


I don't have time tonight to respond to each post individually but I'll make an effort to come back later in the week and will respond accordingly. If you want further information though, please visit the http://www.facebook.com/StampOutIllegalToothWhitening page and i'm sure any of the experts there will help you.

I am always happy to answer questions and will try to be as factual as I possibly can. I would always urge anyone wishing to perform tooth whitening to have their lawyer check it out thoroughly and to ask the training company if they will provide a written guarantee that they will be jointly liable should the technician find themselves facing prosecution for tooth whitening illegally. I'd be willing to bet that not one training company would be willing to do that.