[In the beginning was a relationship].

Judgment and actions based on scientific evidence are modified by the unique caregiver-patient relationship. Caregivers relying exclusively upon "rational" decisions in line with evidence-based clinical recommendations avoid their relational responsibility. The "noble" purpose illustrates that decisions to treat can be at the same time pointless and valuable.

[Toward a practical ethic].

The relationship between ethics and philosophy and jurisdiction is described; different kinds of ethics are presented. The increasing pressure of liberal points of view has boosted the ethics of utility. The ethics of care oppose a too rational utilitarianism, taking into consideration relationships such as the caregiver-patient relationship.

[Evidence-based medicine and its significance for primary health care].

Evidence Based Medicine objectifies health care decision-making, but has its methodological restrictions and can be misused by economists, lawyers, politicians and other decision-makers. Guidelines are being formulated on how to apply EBM in primary care (general practice).

[Value(s)].

After a short explanation of the word value, the (cultural) value of teeth, the economic evaluation of dentistry and the payment criteria are being presented. The specific situation of health care as a service which deviates in quite a few aspects from the standard demand-supply model is being pointed out. Attention is drawn to key characteristics of the liberal professions such as the obligation to perform to the best of one's ability, not to a specific result.

[Accreditation of practitioners of dentistry from 1998-2002. Tabulated data and analysis from the Society of Flemish Dentistry and from the Society of Dental Medicine].

This article gives a brief historical overview of how the accreditation scheme for dentists came into being within the Belgian National Health Insurance System. Data from the central registration body are then being discussed: the number of organizers, the distribution of courses and training programs over the subfields, the number of peer reviews etc. Flemish speaking dentists are noticeably more inclined to become accredited than are their French speaking counterparts.