Sara Hurley, the Chief Dental Officer for England, to stand down.
25 May 2023
Sara Hurley, the Chief Dental Officer for England is standing down after eight years in the job to focus on her new roles as a Non-Executive Director at Surrey Heartlands ICB and as an independent director at the University of Suffolk. She was appointed Chief Dental Officer for England in 2015. Previously, Sara served as a clinician and latterly as Chief Dental Officer for the Army. Since her appointment Sara has championed innovation and delivered on her pledge to “put the mouth back in the body”.
Sara led the dental profession through the Covid-19 pandemic, developing guidance for the profession on the safe delivery of care and managing risk. Whilst the pandemic had a significant impact on dental access, we are now starting to see the signs of recovery. Last year the NHS and Government launched the first reforms to the dental contract in 16 years. Sara was instrumental in developing and launching these reforms, which built on her work to move the profession towards risk-based recall and prioritisation of care for patients with high needs.
NHS England will shortly be undertaking the process to appoint the next Chief Dental Officer for England and we will announce further details in due course.
Edmund Proffitt, BDIA Chief Executive, commented, “The dental industry wishes Sara all the very best for the future. Over the last eight years she has shown a detailed understanding of the industry and its critical role in supporting the provision of dentistry. Her leadership, knowledge and relationships with industry were key in facilitating dental treatment during the pandemic and in the resumption of wider treatment thereafter. Sara’s dedication and vision have been a credit to the post of CDO”.
Read more about Sara Hurley here
