Penny Mordaunt has welcomed today’s opening of the new and refurbished dentistry training school at the University of Portsmouth.
The Portsmouth North MP who has been campaigning for improved access to NHS dentistry since she was first elected, hailed the new and enhanced facilities, covering digital dentistry, haptics, “phantom head” training room and state of the art clinical areas, as a massive step forward in improving access to care.
In addition to the new facilities the University is also at the vanguard of cutting-edge research designed to find better ways of making fillings, crowns and other types of implants using ceramics and 3D printing. This has the potential to cut costs and time for patients seeking this type of treatment.
While other research focuses on public health and assessing the impact on our health through oral hygiene and saliva.
Professor Chris Louca, director and head of the University of Portsmouth Dental Academy, commented: “There is an emphasis on practical teaching within the Dental Academy and these developments and new equipment will ensure our students are trained in modern facilities offering enhanced teaching, resulting in improved oral healthcare for all our patients.”
Penny Mordaunt added: “Today marks another important step in securing access to dentists for everyone in Portsmouth. Following the successful dentistry summit I organised with key partners, we have seen the opening of three dentists in Portsmouth north, a mobile dentist bus and now this £5million expansion and refurbishment of these cutting-edge facilities at the university.
“We have only been able to do this because of the hard work of key partners who are responsible for dentistry in our city and support from the government. I am committed to carrying on this work to ensure that no resident in Portsmouth can’t access a dentist.
“I want to offer my congratulations and best wishes to the university, their staff and students for all of their efforts in delivering these new and enhanced facilities, which will expand access to dentists, develop new technological solutions two dentistry problems such as 3D printing fillings and crowns and also train the next generation of dentists and hygienists.”
