Dento-legal essay competition launched

28 February 2024

The Dental Law and Ethics Forum (DLEF) has announced the launch of its essay prize for 2024. This prestigious prize, now in its third year, is designed to inspire young dentists to engage with the dento-legal aspects of dentistry.

The competition has three categories, and the successful candidates will each be awarded £250 and given the opportunity to speak at the December 2024 meeting of the DLEF. The deadline for all three is July 31, 2024.

The three categories are:

  1. Final year students. Essay title, ‘Is it ever acceptable for a qualified dental professional to discuss their religious beliefs with a patient?’ (Up to 800 words)
  2. First year registrants. Essay title, ‘Discuss how the standard of record keeping expected of a dental professional can be maintained in a busy workplace.’ (Up to 1,000 words)
  3. Registrants qualified for between two and five years. Essay title, ‘Can images of patients taken during dental training be used to promote the work of a dental professional in general practice?’ (Up to 1,500 words).

Chris Morris, president of the DLEF and dually qualified as a dentist and a lawyer, commented, “The standard of entries last year was very high, and all three winners gave excellent presentations at our December meeting. The 2024 essay titles are designed to explore reflection on contemporary issues which can arise in dental practice, and are the kind of topics that the indemnity providers regularly deal with.                                                                           

For more information visit The DLEF Essay Prize 2024 – Dental Law & Ethics Forum