KDA members protest proposed scope-of-practice regulations. [Courtesy]
A fresh fight has erupted between dentists and the medical practitioners regulator over who is qualified to undertake advanced dental procedures and treatment.
The Kenya Dental Association has issued a warning to the Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Council (KMPDC), accusing them of opening doors for unqualified practitioners to carry out complex dental procedures that were once meant for strictly trained dentists.
In a statement dated July 23, the National Governing Council of the Kenya Dental Association condemned a newly published scope of practice document by KMPDC, describing it as unlawful, procedurally reckless and a direct threat to patient safety.
KDA members protest proposed scope-of-practice regulations. [Courtesy]
At the centre of the dispute is a list of clinical procedures the KDA says has been extended through the publication to persons who are not qualified dentists.
The list includes root canal treatment (Endodontics), orthodontic care such as braces (Orthodontics), restorative work like fillings, dentures and other prosthetic treatments, advanced dental surgery, the prescribing of medication (pharmacological prescriptions) and children's dental care (paediatric dentistry care).
"These are advanced clinical procedures and interventions requiring the knowledge, competence and training of qualified dental practitioners and surgeons," the association said, arguing that their inclusion in an administrative publication "threatens patient safety, undermines professional standards and exceeds the proper regulatory process."
Kenya Dental Association's objection goes beyond the content of the new rules to the process behind them and how KMPDC concluded allowing the said practitioners to handle dentist work.
They argue that any change to how a patient is treated and by whom is too consequential to be introduced through a circular or notice.
Such a change, it says, should go through Parliament and involve meaningful public participation and consultation with the dental profession itself, none of which, the KDA claims, took place here.
"The scope of clinical dental practice in Kenya is a matter of public safety. It cannot be altered through circulars, notices or administrative publications that have neither been subjected to public participation nor developed through meaningful consultation with the dental profession and other affected stakeholders," the statement reads.
The association is now demanding that KMPDC withdraw the publication immediately, suspend any steps to implement it, release the expert reports and stakeholder consultations used to justify the changes and convene an urgent forum bringing together dental professionals, universities, professional bodies and the Ministry of Health.
Should the regulator fail to comply, the Kenya Dental Association has warned it will pursue all available legal avenues, cautioning that it will hold individuals out for abusing their office mandates personally responsible for any harm caused to patients.
These concerns of the Kenya Dental Association come after several botched dental surgeries in the country that led to a death earlier this year and sparked public conversation towards unlicensed dental clinics.
KMPDC has regulatory authority under the Medical Practitioners and Dentists Act (Cap. 253) to govern training, licensing and practice standards across medicine and dentistry in Kenya. Whether it will respond to the Kenya Dental Association demands, defend the disputed publication or revise it remains to be seen.
KDA insists its position is not adversarial for its own sake. "The Kenya Dental Association remains committed to working with all stakeholders to strengthen oral healthcare in Kenya while ensuring that every person providing dental treatment possesses the qualifications, competence and legal authority required by law,” the statement concludes.