PCTs Have your say: Wishing on a rising star

Adding fluoride
It doesn't hurt that Kelly also has some big projects to keep her busy. The success of her headline-grabbing fluoride varnish scheme has seen her join some of the NHS roadshows to talk to other PCTs about what's been going on in Hounslow.

The idea came from the CDO and a local MP, but it was up to Kelly to fill in the fine detail. Children go to Asda supermarket with their parents, where they are approached by one of the team and offered the fluoride varnish. If the child already has an NHS dentist, they're simply given a card to take to the practice where they can exchange it for a ‘Brush for Life' kit.

If they don't have a dentist, then they're directly booked in to see one – the team has an appointment system set up. In each locality, one practice a week works on the project, so there is always someone ready to see the children, sign them up – and then, of course, give them their ‘Brush for Life' kit, too.

The project has grown since its inception. Kelly says: ‘It's been hugely successful – we're seeing between 35-40 children a day. We've had a lot of feedback from people asking whether we could do it full time, too.' The varnish teams work three days a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays) from 11am to 7pm.

Funding for the scheme would normally have been hard to come by, but Kelly admits that it wasn't an issue for her. She says: ‘We were approached by the Department of Health at the same point when the growth money was being given out, so it was great timing. But I had to remind them that I wouldn't have any UDAs for that money, so told them not to expect loads more fillings.'

Hounslow was a good choice for the scheme, as Kelly clearly takes her communication with the public really seriously.

‘We're trying to raise our game in every way in which we deal with the public, not just in dentistry,' she says. Alongside the varnish scheme, she has done various things to increase the profile of NHS dentistry in the local community, from radio interviews to leaflet drops.

One of the most successful bids has been the ‘street team' campaign, which put PCT representatives on the high street to talk to people about access and even book them in directly with local practices. This has brought in around 70 new patients each day.

Added to the success of the other schemes, it's clear to see that the tide in Hounslow is turning.

Why not Southampton?