Beyond UDAs: How Complex Care Pathways Are Changing NHS Dentistry

What even is a Complex Care Pathway (CCP)?

A Complex Care Pathway is an alternative claiming route for adult NHS patients (16+) in England, with defined levels of disease or decay. This comes into place on 23^rd June.

Rather than claiming treatment under the traditional NHS bands, eligible patients can be placed onto one of three pathways, each attracting a fixed payment over a set treatment period.

The pathways are intended to support disease stabilisation, prevention, behavioural change, and ongoing review rather than isolated episodes of care.

What Are the Complex Care Pathways and Who Is Eligible?

Pathway 1 - Severe decay without unstable periodontal disease

(Treatment provided over 6 months)

Pathway 2 - Severe decay PLUS unstable periodontal disease

(Treatment provided over 12 months)

Pathway 3 - New diagnosis of Grade C periodontal disease

(Treatment provided over 6 months)

How Does It Work?

Unlike traditional NHS claims, CCPs are paid as fixed values rather than predefined UDA allocations.

The pathway value is converted into UDAs using the practice's nominal UDA rate; this is the same as the changes we saw earlier in the year with the nominal value and unscheduled care changes.

Example for a practice with a nominal UDA value of £30:

Pathway

Tariff

UDA Equivalent

Caries (1)

£284

9.46 UDAs

Caries and Perio (2)

£709

23.53 UDAs

Periodontitis (3)

£248

8.26 UDAs

All three pathways carry a standard Band 2 charge, currently £76.60, for the patient, unless they are payment exempt.

Is it required?

One of the most important aspects of the CCP change is clinician choice!

The pathway is an alternative claiming mechanism, not a replacement for traditional NHS banding.

For every eligible patient, clinicians should consider which route best reflects the care being delivered and the financial implications for the practice.

How Pearl is Supporting this Change?

We've already updated Pearl to support Complex Care Pathways, making it simple for your team to record and manage eligible patients within the software.

To help you get started, we've created a full guide covering everything you need to know about sending these through Pearl.

If you'd like some extra support, Kerry, our Practice Success Consultant, is available to answer questions, share best practices, and help your practice make the most of the new pathways.

Read the full guide here.

Book a call with Kerry and get your practice CCP ready.

Beyond UDAs: How Complex Care Pathways Are Changing NHS Dentistry