Quality assurance practices in the community dental services within the North and South Thames Regions.

The aim of this study was to describe the progress of implementing Quality Assurance (QA) programmes within the Community Dental Services (CDS) in the North and South Thames Regions. Nearly 70 per cent of CDS managers responded to the survey questionnaire. The results indicate that although definite progress has been achieved in most services, further progress is being limited by a lack of co-operation between different departments and the minimal support and guidance being given to those responsible for the management and development of the QA programmes.