In 2017 the National Institute for Health (NIHR) Clinical Research Network (CRN) Oral and Dental Health Specialty Group in collaboration with the Dental Schools Council and Public Health England, launched an initiative to identify unanswered questions relating to oral and dental health research from a patient, public and clinical perspective. Following a workshop held on the 12th December 2018, the Top 10 research priorities for Oral and Dental Research were announced. These priorities are now becoming the focus for funding agencies and researchers.
If we are to answer these questions, we will need to have a network of dental professionals to carry out the research. Within the NHS, high quality research is supported by the National Institute for Health Research which provides the infrastructure enabling research to take place.  A dedicated NIHR Oral and Dental Specialty group ensures this support is relevant to dentistry.
The NIHR CRN Oral and Dental Specialty Group is conducting a survey to:
1. Â Â Identify Dentists and Dental Care Professionals interested in taking part in research
2. Â Â Describe their practice characteristics and readiness to take part
This initiative has been strongly endorsed by the Faculty of General Dental Practice, the Chief Dental Officers of the four UK home nations, the Dental Schools Council and the British Society for Oral and Dental Research.
Please complete this short survey to help us understand the workforce currently available to develop and deliver oral and dental health research and how we can strengthen this. Even if you are not interested in taking part in research, please just answer the first three questions so that we can gain a sense of the proportion of colleagues who are interested.
If you have any questions about the survey or have problems accessing the link to the form please contact Shamaila Anwar (NHR Specialty Cluster Manager for Oral and Dental Health) at crnoraldental@nihr.ac.uk.  The survey will close on the 28th Feb 2019.