Modern Day Slavery Awareness

Aims

This course aims to equip UK dental professionals with a comprehensive understanding of modern slavery and its relevance to the dental practice. It seeks to move beyond general awareness, providing the dental team with the specific knowledge needed to identify potential victims among patients, understand their legal duties under UK legislation (such as the Modern Slavery Act 2015), and recognize the importance of ethical procurement. By exploring the intersection of human rights, clinical safeguarding, and responsible business management, this course empowers dental professionals to play an active role in eradicating exploitation.

Objectives

During this course, learners will be able to:

• Contextualize Modern Slavery: Understand the definition of modern slavery and how it manifests specifically within the UK and the healthcare sector.
• Recognize Clinical Indicators: Identify specific physical, behavioural, and oral health signs that may indicate a patient is a victim of exploitation or trafficking.
• Understand Vulnerabilities: Explore the socio-economic and political factors that may make certain patient demographics more vulnerable to coercion and control.
• Analyse Impact: Understand the severe physical and psychological impact of modern slavery on victims, including dental neglect and trauma.
• Navigate Legal Frameworks: Assess the obligations placed on dental professionals by the Modern Slavery Act 2015, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and the General Dental Council (GDC) standards.
• Review Safeguarding Protocols: Learn the correct procedures for reporting concerns to the Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) and external authorities like the National Referral Mechanism (NRM).
• Implement Ethical Procurement: Grasp the importance of supply chain transparency and how to make ethical purchasing decisions regarding dental instruments, materials, and services.
• Examine Corporate Responsibility: Explore how dental practices can implement policies that prevent complicity in modern slavery and promote fair labour practices.

Learning Outcomes

After completing this course, the learner will be able to:

• Define modern slavery and its various forms within the context of UK law and healthcare.
• Identify red flags in a patient's presentation, such as restricted freedom, lack of autonomy, or unexplained dental trauma.
• Analyze the root causes and contributors to modern slavery that may affect patients visiting a UK dental practice.
• Examine the professional and ethical responsibilities of the dental team in safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• Evaluate and apply the correct reporting channels for suspected cases of modern slavery within the UK.
• Promote ethical consumerism by critically assessing the supply chains of dental products used in the practice.
• Encourage responsible business practices by advocating for transparency and ethical standards in practice management.
• Collaborate effectively with external agencies and NGOs to support victims and raise awareness.
• Forecast future steps the practice can take to strengthen its safeguarding and ethical procurement policies.

GDC Development Outcomes

A, D