The National Health Service (Personal Dental Services Agreements) (Wales) Regulations 2006

Violent patients

3.—(1) Where—

(a) a patient of the contractor has committed an act of violence or behaved in such a way against any persons specified in sub-paragraph (2) as a consequence of which that person has feared for his or her safety; and

(b) the contractor has reported the incident to the police,

the contractor may notify the Relevant Body that it will no longer provide services to that patient under the agreement.

(2) The persons referred to in sub-paragraph (1) are—

(a) any party to the agreement who is an individual;

(b) any member of the contractor’s staff;

(c) a person engaged by the contractor to perform or assist in the performance of services under the agreement; or

(d) any other person present—

(i) on the practice premises; or

(ii) in the place where services were provided to the patient under the agreement.

(3) Notification under sub-paragraph (1) may be given by any means including telephone, fax or email but if not given in writing will subsequently be confirmed in writing within seven days (and for this purpose a faxed or email notification is not a written one).

(4) The time at which the contractor notifies the Relevant Body will be the time at which it makes the telephone call or sends or delivers the notification to the Relevant Body.

(5) The Relevant Body will—

(a) acknowledge in writing receipt of the notice from the contractor under sub-paragraph (1); and

(b) take all reasonable steps to inform the patient concerned as soon as is reasonably practicable.