A fresh look at the Care Contract Oral Health Assessment
Published: 31/07/2025
Thanks to your feedback, we’ve updated the Care Contract Oral Health Assessment to better reflect modern dentistry.
Working closely with our clinical team and a group of Denplan member dentists, we’ve refreshed the assessment, especially around routine and restorative care.
Why did we make these changes?
The previous version had been in place for a long time and didn’t reflect the latest developments in dental care or the rising costs of materials and practice management.
How did we do it?
We worked with member dentists already using Denplan Care. They helped us redesign the assessment to include new scoring options—such as for tooth wear and gum health—based on the latest BSP 2017 guidelines. After testing the updated version with more dentists, we refined it further and created a new Care Contract.
We’ve put together some simple guidance to help you get up to speed with what’s new.
You’ll be able to order the contract pads in the normal way (through your dashboard) from w/c 11th August.
Please get in touch with your Business Development Consultant if you have any questions.
What are the key changes to the Oral Health Assessment?
Here’s a view of our old version:
Filled surfaces | Root filled teeth | Gingival condition | Peridontal status | Prostheses worn | Plaque control |
Amalgam (per surface) = 1 | Upper anteriors = 4 | Good = 0 | No significant bone less = 0 | Per bridge pontic = 6 | Excellent = 0 |
Composite (per surface) = 2 | Lower anteriors Premolars = 8 | Mild gingivitis = 2 | Average bone loss = 6 | Per denture (1-5 teeth) = 10 | Good = 2 |
Crown or bridge retainer (per tooth) = 4 | Molars = 12 | Moderate = 4 | Significant bone loss = 18 | Per denture (6-10 teeth) = 16 | Average = 6 |
Crown post = 4 | Severe = 6 | Per denture (11+ teeth) = 24 | Poor = 12 |
Check out the new changes in this snippet of the guide:
Restorations | Root filled teeth | Gingival condition | Peridontal status | Bone loss | Tooth wear (BEWE) |
Direct restoration (per surface) = 2 | Upper anteriors = 4 | Clinical gingival health = 0 | Currently stable = 0 | <15% = 0 | No tooth wear = 0 |
Indirect restoration (Single unit) = 4 | Lower anteriors Premolars = 8 | Localised gingivitis = 4 | Localised = 2 | 15–30% = 6 | Normal for age (1-2) = 2 |
Bridge retainer (per unit) = 4 | Molars = 12 | Generalised gingivitis = 6 | Generalised = 4 | 30–60% = 12 | Increased for age (3–8) = 8 |
Bridge pontic (per unit) = 6 | Periodontitis = 8 | Currently unstable = 10 | 60%+ = 18 | Significantly increased (9–13) = 13 | |
Veneer (per unit) = 6 | Severe tooth wear = 20 | ||||
Denture(s) (per replaced tooth) = 2 |
We’ve also introduced a new order to the assessment
The new order is:
1. Restorations
a. Amalgamated the previous protheses worn and scored dentures as 2 per replaced tooth
b. Direct restoration- due to the decline in the use of amalgam, the rise in costs and time spent in the chair, we concluded that it would be most suitable for all restorations to be scored equally
c. Bridge work has been separated to pontic and retainer per unit.
2. Root filled teeth
a. Replaced terminology of upper anteriors to upper incisors.
3. Gingival condition
a. Amended to align with the BSP17 classification.
4. Periodontal Status
a. Amended to align with the BSP17 assessment of periodontal status.
b. More significant scoring has been added due to required maintenance from both the hygienist and dentist.
5. Bone loss NEW
a. Field included, it was felt that if a patient was currently stable, they may still have significant bone loss and would require more maintenance and monitoring.
6. Tooth wear (BEWE) NEW
a. With tooth wear being recognised as an increasing problem, it felt pertinent to include it in the new assessment.
We have removed the plaque control, it was felt that the gingival health would highlight the plaque control.
Please note that the care contract continues to exclude the provision, repair or replacement of dental Implants and their related super structures. Implant related hygiene treatment outside of normal maintence will also be excluded.
What are the changes to the Terms and Conditions?
Clause 1: We’ve added an explanation of what the Patient Leaving Form is.
Clause 2: We’ve amended the terminology to ‘Dental Care Professional’ to incorporate treatment provided by other team members within their scope of practice, i.e. Therapist.
Clause 10: We’ve made it clear that a dentist can end a contract straight away if they experience unreasonable or abusive behaviour. Whether that’s towards themselves or Denplan.
Clause 18: We’ve removed the term ‘mediation’ and replaced it with ‘clinical complaint’. We’ve also added an overview of what the clinical complaint process includes.
Please note that the oral health assessment is intended as a guide.
Please be aware that the oral health assessment is to be used as guide. We are aware that it is impossible to have a direct category for every patient, as the treating clinician you will understand your patients requirements.
If after assessesing the patient and in your clinical opinion you feel they will require more time in the chair and should be in an alternative category then a conversation with the patient to explain your decision should take place.