Scottish Government looking for new CDO
The £90,000-plus a year job is being offered on a secondment of up to five years.
The Scottish Government is advertising the post of Chief Dental Officer for Scotland.
“This is an exciting opportunity to play a leading role in influencing, advising and developing the wide range of government policies relevant to dentistry,” it said.
The post, which commands an annual salary of between £90,718 and £94,383, is being offered on a secondment of up to five years, based on existing terms and conditions between the Scottish Government and the applicant’s current employer. Alternatively, the successful applicant could be appointed as a civil servant at deputy director level.
“The Chief Dental Officer (CDO) will form an integral part of the Government’s network of senior clinical advisers. This is a vital role in leading the dental profession and supporting the Scottish Government’s ongoing development of oral health policy and dental reform,” it said.
“The CDO will be expected to contribute to the wider corporate responsibility of improving health, promoting realistic medicine and ensuring the provision of care is safe, effective and patient-centred.
“This post is critical to the delivery of the commitment to further strengthen primary care dental services through targeted investment in the workforce to improve capacity and patient access as set out in the NHS Renewal Plan published in January 2025.
“Alongside providing support and advice to the other three UK Nations, the CDO provides a core advisory function to colleagues and Ministers whilst having strong links with the General Dental Council.”
Tom Ferris, the current CDO, was seconded to the Scottish Government as Deputy Chief Dental Officer in 2010, from his posts with NHS Forth Valley and NHS Education for Scotland, and was appointed CDO in 2018. Qualifying in 1982, he had worked in general practice, the hospital service, the salaried service in Scotland and in the hospital service in Malta.
During his tenure as CDO, Ferris led the Government’s management of dental services during the COVID-19 pandemic, and subsequent remobilisation, and more recently the introduction of a new model of care and the reform of the system of payment for NHS dentistry.
1 Comment
If that is the salary banding for CDO then it highlights the fact that the job is inconsequential! Most senior posts both in PDS and education pay more than this so, who with experience, will be interested in applying? Surely we should be trying to get the best candidate into the job to argue for dentistry going into the future!