Dental Registration Act 1999 · 2022 Revised Edition · Part 5 · Disciplinary Proceedings and Health Committee Inquiries
55. Unfitness to practise through illness, etc.
Feedback & supportWhere the fitness of a registered dentist or registered oral health therapist to practise dentistry is judged by the Health Committee to be impaired by reason of his or her physical or mental condition, the Health Committee may exercise one or more of the following powers:
registered dentist
“registered dentist” means a person who is registered as a dentist under this Act and includes a person deemed to be a registered dentist under section 80(1), and “registered as a dentist” and “registration as a dentist” have corresponding meanings;
order that he or she pays to the Council costs and expenses of and incidental to any inquiry or hearing by the Health Committee and, where applicable, an Interim Orders Committee;
order that his or her registration as a dentist or an oral health therapist be suspended for any period not exceeding 12 months that may be specified in the order;
order that his or her registration as a dentist or an oral health therapist be conditional on his or her compliance, during any period not exceeding 3 years that may be specified in the order, with any requirements that may be imposed by the Health Committee for the protection of members of the public or in his or her interests (called in this Division restricted registration); (d)recommend to the Council that his or her name be removed from the appropriate register.
Where a registered dentist or registered oral health therapist in respect of whom an order for restricted registration is made under subsection (1)(c), or an order for interim restricted registration is made under section 58(1)(b) or 60(1)(d), is judged by the Health Committee to have failed to comply with any of the requirements imposed on him or her as conditions of his or her registration, the Health Committee may, if it thinks fit, order that his or her registration be suspended for any period not exceeding 12 months that may be specified in the order.
registered oral health therapist
“registered oral health therapist” means a person registered as an oral health therapist under section 21;
Where the Health Committee has made an order for suspension under subsection (1)(b) or (2), the Health Committee may order that the registration of the person whose registration is suspended must, as from the expiry of the current period of suspension, be a restricted registration.
Health Committee
“Health Committee” means the Health Committee appointed under section 54;
Where the Health Committee has made an order for suspension under subsection (1)(b) or (2) against a person and that person has failed to comply with that order, the Health Committee may, if it thinks fit —
make a recommendation mentioned in subsection (1)(d) to the Council, and subsection (9) applies accordingly; or
order that, as from the expiry of the current period of suspension, his or her registration in the appropriate register be restricted in the manner that it thinks fit for a period not exceeding 3 years.
Where the Health Committee has made an order for restricted registration, the Health Committee may revoke the order or revoke or vary any of the conditions imposed by the order.
Subsection (2) applies to a registered dentist or registered oral health therapist whose registration is a restricted registration by virtue of an order made under subsection (3) or (4) as it applies to a registered dentist or registered oral health therapist whose registration is a restricted registration by virtue of an order made under subsection (1)(c), and subsection (5) applies accordingly.
Where the Health Committee has made any order under this section, or has varied the conditions imposed by an order for restricted registration, the Registrar must immediately serve on the person to whom the order applies a notice of the order or of the variation.
While a person’s registration is suspended by virtue of this section, the person must not be regarded as being registered as a dentist or an oral health therapist even though the person’s name still appears in the appropriate register.
appropriate register
“appropriate register” means any of the registers mentioned in section 13(1), as appropriate;
Where the Council accepts the recommendation of the Health Committee under subsection (1)(d), the Council must by order direct that the name of the registered dentist or registered oral health therapist be removed from the appropriate register and that order takes effect from the date it is made.
Council
“Council” means the Singapore Dental Council established under section 3(1);
Sections 47(5), (6) and (7) and 48 apply, with the necessary modifications, to the Health Committee and references to a Disciplinary Committee are to be read as references to the Health Committee.
Disciplinary Committee
“Disciplinary Committee” means a Disciplinary Committee appointed under section 47;
Any person who is aggrieved by an order, or any variation of the conditions imposed by an order for restricted registration, made under this section may, within 21 days of the service on him or her of the notification of the order, appeal to the Minister whose decision is final.
Any order or any variation of the conditions imposed by an order for restricted registration takes effect from the time the order or variation is made unless the Minister decides otherwise.[49