We read the opinion article by Sönmez and Bedi with great interest and commend the authors for highlighting the evolving public health role of dental therapists.1 While their discussion focused on HPV vaccination, we believe this opens a wider and timely conversation about the broader contributions dental therapists can make within NHS dentistry, particularly in addressing workforce shortages, treatment backlogs, and the need for sustainable reform.

Countries such as New Zealand and Australia successfully integrated dental therapists into wider scopes of practice, including pulpotomy and extraction of primary teeth.2,3 The UK's General Dental Council recognises that, within their scope of training and competence, dental therapists are permitted to carry out a broad range of clinical procedures, including direct restorations, pulpotomies, extractions of primary teeth, and placement of preformed crowns.4

However, despite these defined competencies, dental therapists in the UK remain underutilised due to historical limitations in prescribing rights, scope recognition in practice, and NHS contractual models that do not incentivise their full integration.5,6,7 A study found that 73% of clinical time in NHS primary dental care was spent on tasks that could be delegated to dental care professionals, yet most dental therapists are not enabled to work to their full scope.7

Expanding dental therapists' practical role would allow dentists to focus on complex procedures while therapists deliver routine care such as restorations, radiographs, and preventive interventions. Their involvement in urgent care such as providing pulpotomies and simple extractions for children could reduce unnecessary visits to emergency departments and help limit the growing demand for general anaesthesia in paediatric dentistry. Dental therapists could support community outreach, oral health education, and behavioural counselling, while contributing to early detection of systemic disease as part of integrated primary care teams.

This is not about replacing dentists but enhancing NHS dentistry's capacity and resilience. With structured training and regulatory oversight already in place, the workforce solution we need is already here.