Oral Health Intelligence

The Dental Public Health team provides leadership in developing and improving oral health intelligence and provides specialist advice and support to stakeholders.  These include the Welsh Government, Health Boards, non-dental functions within Public Health Wales and other statutory bodies.

Our oral health intelligence function is described in the Welsh Health Circular for Dental Public Health [WHC (2021) 032]. We are responsible for the design, conduct and delivery of the Dental Epidemiology Programme for Wales, working alongside the Welsh Oral Health Information Unit. This determines the level and impact of dental disease on 5-year-olds, 12-year-olds and adult cohorts. The information generated is critical to informing Welsh Government’s dental policy on dental services and oral health, the on-going dental contract reform programme and helps to guide local dental service planning.

Welsh Oral Health Information Unit https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/research/explore/research-units/welsh-oral-health-information-unit.

The oral health intelligence function also determines inequities in the provision and utilisation of NHS dental services and the impact of poor oral health on general health and well-being across the life-course. This information should be helpful for health boards in their local dental service planning and inform Welsh Government’s dental policy on dental services and oral health. 

Welsh Government Statistics NHS dental services: https://gov.wales/nhs-dental-services

StatsWales General Dental Services: https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Health-and-Social-Care/General-Dental-Services

We report annually on the number of general anaesthesia dental procedures carried out on children aged 0-17 in Wales.  Child Dental General Anaesthetics in Wales 2019-2020

Child dental general anaesthetics annual reports | GOV.WALES

Last updated:  8 June 2022