The UK dental regulator, the General Dental Council (GDC), has successfully prosecuted Joe Jordan of Denture Care & Repair, a mobile business in the Winchester area, for 14 counts of illegally practising dentistry.
Joe Jordan pleaded guilty to the 14 offences at Southampton Magistrates Court on 18 February. These offences related to his treatment of five patients. The treatment involved taking impressions from patients and the manufacture and fitting of dentures which caused the patients discomfort. As Joe Jordan is not registered with the GDC these are criminal offences under the Dentists Act.
Joe Jordan was given 100 hours unpaid work (formerly known as community service) for each offence, to be served concurrently, and was ordered to pay £1,322 compensation to three patients (£642 to one patient and £340 each to two other patients). In addition he was ordered to make a contribution of £400 to the GDC's costs.
The recent convictions followed two earlier convictions against Joe Jordan, trading as Rapid Repairs, at the same court on 6 December 2006 for the illegal practice of dentistry. On that occasion he was given a twelve-month conditional discharge. By committing the new offences Mr Jordan breached the conditional discharge. As a result he was re-sentenced to an additional 100 hours unpaid work which will run concurrently with the sentences for the latest convictions.
A two-day hearing will take place in August (5 and 6) where the GDC will make an application for an anti-social behaviour order (ASBO) against Mr. Jordan.
GDC Chief Executive and Registrar Duncan Rudkin said:
“The General Dental Council’s priority is to protect the public. We can do this by taking action against individuals who abuse patient trust by practising illegally.
We rely on information we receive from patients and others. If any members of the public have information which suggests that an individual has practised dentistry without being registered with the GDC they should contact us.”
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Notes to editors:
- The Dentists Act 1984 makes it a criminal offence for anyone other than a registered dental professional to carry out dentistry. The GDC is committed to protecting the public by bringing cases of illegal practice to court.
- As the UK regulatory body of the dental profession, the GDC has a duty to protect the public. More information about all areas of the GDC’s work is available from this website.