A DENTIST from County Durham has been struck off the dental register for misconduct which amounted to “a serious departure” from expected standards.

The name of Evangelia Xenidou, who is registered in Consett, County Durham, was erased from the register by the General Dental Council following a public hearing into allegations of misconduct by the GDC's Professional Conduct Committee (PCC).

Ms Xenidou provided NHS dental treatment to the patients involved under the NHS general dental services contract at a number of dental surgeries in the North-East between December 2010 and May 2013.

A large number of allegations were found proved by the PCC. These include clinical and record keeping failings in relation to 18 patients and multiple inappropriate and dishonest claims.

In the case of Patient A her care and treatment was found to be substandard after she attempted to extract a tooth that did not require extraction, using an inappropriate technique and caused damage to other teeth.

Ms Xenidou also failed to keep any adequate records of the treatment provided, including extractions.

In another specimen case the care provided to Patient B was said to be substandard because she issued a prescription for antibiotics without adequate clinical justification. Her record keeping was said to be substandard in relation to this patient after she failed to adequately record a treatment plan or use of anaesthetic.

In a statement the PCC concluded: “Ms Xenidou's fitness to practise is impaired by reason of her deficient professional performance and misconduct. It also considered that public confidence in the profession would be undermined if a finding of impaired fitness to practise was not made in the light of the serious clinical failings and protracted dishonest claims made by Ms Xenidou.

“Ms Xenidou's conduct was a serious departure from the GDC's Standards, caused harm to a patient through incompetence and there is a continued risk of harm to patients in the absence of adequate remediation and insight. Ms Xenidou's behaviour was dishonest and therefore would be almost impossible to remediate via these regulatory proceedings."

As a result the committee directed that Ms Xenidou's name be erased from the Dentists Register.

Unless Ms Xenidou, who was immediately suspended, exercises her right of appeal, her name will be struck off the register in approximately 28 days.

Ms Xenidou was not represented at the hearing and did not attend in person.