Nottinghamshire Dentist NHS Recall Cost £500,000

17 March 2015, 18:59 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50

After the biggest NHS recall in history in Nottinghamshire, we now know 5 people being treated at a Gedling dentist, tested positive for Hepatitis C.

It's not yet known if they got the disease after poor hygiene procedures at the Daybrook Dental Practice.

Undercover filming in Nottinghamshire appeared to show Desmond D'Mello using the same instruments on multiple patients without sterilising them, as well as re-using surgical gloves.

He worked at Daybrook Dental Practise in Gedling.

The NHS recall is thought to be the biggest in medical history and NHS England have tols Capital it is expected to have cost around £500,000.

22,000 people treated by Desmond D'Mello there were offered tests, 4,500 thousand took them up.

 Dr Doug Black, Medical Director for NHS England in Nottinghamshire, said: "Of the 4,526 patients seen and tested at a temporary clinic at Highcroft Medical Centre in Arnold, five patients were newly diagnosed with hepatitis C and there are no newly diagnosed cases of hepatitis B or HIV.

"We have always been clear that the risk to patients was low, but we still had a duty to inform patients of this and offer the option for them to be tested.

"Treatments are available for all of the blood-borne viruses tested for, so we are pleased that these individuals have been identified and offered clinical support to aid their wellbeing.

"Now that this patient screening exercise is complete, we will be focusing our efforts on what we can learn from this incident and ensuring all our findings are shared with the General Dental Council to inform their ongoing investigation into Mr D’Mello."

Desmond D'Mello was suspended for 18 months by the General Dental Council on 21 August.  An investigation by the Council is continuing.