Dentists practising in areas adjunctive to dentistry should have completed training and be endorsed by the Dental Board of Australia.
2.1. Dentists practising in areas adjunctive to dentistry should have completed training and be
endorsed by the Dental Board of Australia
2.2. Dentists must only include those areas of practice adjunctive to dentistry if they have fulfilled the
Board requirements.
2.3. Where a Board requires endorsement to practise in an area adjunctive to dentistry, a dentist must
obtain such endorsement prior to commencing practice in that area.
2.4. To ensure uniformity, the Australian Dental Council (ADC) is the appropriate body to certify
educational requirements for areas of practice adjunctive to dentistry.
2.5. Endorsement of areas of practice adjunctive to dentistry must not confer specialist status.
2.6. Where there is no formal training program available, dentists are expected to demonstrate
appropriate levels of education and training to justify such adjunctive practice and ensure
commensurate public safety.
3.1. The Board and other regulatory authorities in Australia have introduced specific requirements,
including educational programs, which dentists must fulfil to provide certain areas of practice
adjunctive to dentistry. However, such requirements do not confer specialist status.
3.2. Currently the only area of practice adjunctive to dentistry for which the Board requires
endorsement is conscious sedation.
3.3. The ADC or the Board offers a process for certification of programs which are a requirement to
gain endorsement to practise in areas adjunctive to dentistry.
4.1. AREAS OF PRACTICE ADJUNCTIVE TO DENTISTRY are elements of dental practice which are
usually not unique to dentistry, nor part of undergraduate dental education and training. These
could include acupuncture, conscious sedation for dental procedures and hypnosis.,
4.2. BOARD is the Dental Board of Australia.
4.3. A DENTIST is an appropriately qualified dental practitioner, registered by the Board to practise all
areas of dentistry
4.4. CONSCIOUS SEDATION covers a spectrum of drug-induced states that range from minimal
sedation to deep sedation.
4.5. AUSTRALIAN DENTAL COUNCIL (the ADC) is an independent authority assigned the
accreditation functions for the dental profession by the Dental Board of Australia under
the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme.
June 2025
June 2030
This Policy Statement is linked to other Policy Statement: 6.17 Conscious Sedation in Dentistry & 6.30
Neurotoxins and Dermal Fillers in Dentistry.
