Position Statement from the Society for the Advancement of Anaesthesia in Dentistry (SAAD) regarding the recent disbandment of the current IACSD Committee

SAAD acknowledges the recent disbandment of the Intercollegiate Advisory Committee for Sedation in Dentistry (IACSD). We recognise that this development may prompt questions and uncertainty within the dental sedation community.

SAAD would like to reassure members that the IACSD 2020 and the SDCEP 2017 guidance documents remain active. These documents describe current professional guidance for safe and effective conscious sedation practice across all dental settings. 

As the largest dental sedation specialist society, we remain committed to keeping our members and the wider profession fully informed and will update or amend our guidance and organisational stance as appropriate. 

The SAAD Safe Sedation Practice Scheme (SSPS) and the SAAD Safe Sedation Certificate (SSC) remain in place to support services and sedationists. These programmes provide service evaluation, quality assurance, and peer-review discussion for sedation providers, helping to ensure validated standards of patient care and safety. 

We will continue to engage with all stakeholders to promote safe, high-quality sedation practice for the benefit of patients and the dental teams who care for them.