PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS EPISODE CONTAINS DISCUSSIONS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE.

In this podcast episode, hosts Chris and Andy sit down with Preetee Hylton, a dedicated dental nurse and the President-elect of the British Association of Dental Nurses (BADN). Preetee shares her journey into the dental profession, which she has grown to love despite an initially different career outlook.

Preetee delves into her upbringing, discussing whether her parents' careers influenced her path into dentistry. She reveals the pivotal moments and motivations that led her to become a dental nurse and reflects on the experiences gained by working in various settings throughout her career.

She talks about how career has evolved from patient-facing roles to more management-focused responsibilities and discusses the importance of raising awareness about domestic abuse within the dental profession, highlighting the unique position dental practices have in maintaining ongoing relationships with their patients.

She also touches on the general treatment and perception of dental nurses in the field. As she prepares to assume the role of president-elect of the BADN in October, she shares her feelings about this new responsibility, outlines her plans and shares her views on the best and worst aspects of working in dentistry.

Topics:

- What was your upbringing like?

- Are your parents in dentistry?

- What was the spark to get into the profession?

- After you qualified did you settle down or move around to gain a broad range of experience?

- Has your own career seen you move away from patient facing and more into management?

- Raising awareness of domestic abuse – is this something that dentistry has a role to play?

- Treatment of dental nurses in practices – how is this in general?

- Your role as president-elect of the BADN – what’s your agenda?

- What’s the best and worst thing about dentistry?

In this special episode of the Dentology Podcast, hosts Andy and Chris discuss the 9 steps involved in buying a dental practice.

With so many things to think about, buying outright or buying into a dental practice is not as easy as it sounds. So often viewing a dental practice is seen as the first session step towards practice ownership. Indeed, it is a critical step, but some firm foundations need laying well before this time.

In this episode, Andy and Chris explore some of the key steps involved in a dental practice purchase and share their top tips on how best to start the journey towards practice ownership.

In this week’s episode of Dentology, hosts Chris and Andy chat with Simran Bains, a dentist, Chair of the BACD’s young membership committee, and secretary of the College of Dentistry West Midlands division.

Simran shares stories from her childhood and her time at dentistry school before qualifying in 2017. She explains how, from graduation until 2023, she gained valuable experience working in four different practices—two private and two high-needs NHS—allowing her to broaden her skills and learn more about herself.

She discusses her current studies pursuing a Post-graduate Diploma in Restorative and Aesthetic Dentistry and outlines her future career plans.

Finally, Simran talks about her role with the BACD, her involvement as a judge in the Private Dentistry Awards 2024, and her recognition in the Dentistry Top 50 for 2023 and 2024.

Topics:

- Background and childhood

- Do you have dentists in your family?

- Was dentistry always your dream?

- Your time spent at Dentistry School & graduating in 2017

- Tell us about working in 4 different practices from graduation until 2023

- How did this allow you to broaden your skills?

- Would you encourage younger dentists to move around a bit and get some broader experience?

- Your current studies & future career plans

- Being the Chair of the BACD young membership committee

- Dental Awards – what’s your opinion?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, hosts Chris and Andy chat with Luke Hutchings, a dentist in general practice in Hampshire and the President of the British Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (BACD).

Luke shares his inspiration for becoming a dentist, memories of graduating from Cardiff Dental School in 2002, and his early career days in the NHS where he built clinical experience and honed his patient communication skills.

He discusses whether the NHS provides a foundation for newly qualified dentists and if there’s a trend towards ‘going private’ too soon.

Luke also talks about his decision to transition to private practice in 2011, the training that supported this move, being recognised as the Aesthetic Dentist of the Year in 2021, and his current role as the President of the BACD, including how the group has benefitted him as a clinician and his priorities for his term.

Topics:

- What was your inspiration to become a dentist?

- Is there dentistry in your family history?

- Graduating from dental school in 2002

- What did this period in your life teach you?

- Do you have fond memories of your dental school experience?

- Was your early career a good time to build your skills?

- Is the NHS overlooked as a good grounding for newly qualified dentists?

- Is there a trend to go private too soon?

- Your transition to private practice in 2011

- Aesthetic Dentist Award 2021

- Current role and priorities as President of the BACD

This week we welcome back Ashley Latter, author and experienced business trainer/coach, and delve deeper into the topic of dentists discussing fees with their patients, previously touched upon in his first episode (episode 131, released in Feb 2024).

In this episode, Ashley explores whether dentists value themselves and examines the potential link between self-worth and the ease of discussing fees.

He discusses if there is a standard process that can make the 'money conversation' more comfortable, identifies who in a practice is best suited to discuss fees, and addresses the gap between public perception and the actual cost of dentistry. Additionally, he considers the impact of the NHS's positioning on this issue.

Finally, Ashley highlights the importance of training and the necessary skills for discussing fees within a dental practice. He also questions whether there is enough tenacity in dental practices to handle objections effectively or if there is a tendency to quickly move on to the next patient.

Topics:

- Do dentists value themselves?

- Does there need to be a link between valuing yourself and others to be comfortable discussing fees?

- Is there a standard process to follow which makes the ‘money conversation’ easier?

- Who is the best person in a practice to discuss fees?

- Is there a disconnect between public perception and the actual cost of dentistry?

- Does the positioning of the NHS help?

- Are there other areas of life that getting comfortable with fees positively impact?

- Is there enough tenacity in dental practices to handle objections or is there a tendency to move on to the next patient?

- How important is training to be informed enough to discuss fees?

- Is there a fine line between hard sales tactics vs ethical sales?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, hosts Chris and Andy chat to Roy Bennett, who is not only the founder of Mellow Sedation Ltd, an IV sedation accredited training company, but also a seasoned dentist and educator.

Roy chats about how dentistry is still a big part of his life having been in practice for over 36 years. He reflects on his early career days, his time at dental school and what initially inspired him to pursue dentistry as a profession.

He talks about his decision to start a private practice back in 1995, why he chose to move away from the NHS so early in his career, and his 2010 venture into founding a sedation training company, offering specialised courses and lectures throughout the UK.

Finally, he shares his views on the important role of communication in dentistry and shares insights into how he personally manages his own clinical and non-clinical learning and development.

Topics:

- What was dental school like back in the 1980’s?

- Did dental school back then equip you to be a dentist?

- Why did you decide to leave the NHS?

- The decision to set up a sedation training company in 2010

- Does sedation have a broader place in dentistry before being for anxious patients?

- Do anxious patients require different communication techniques to achieve a positive experience for them?

- Is communication given enough air-time in dentistry?

- Through your own career, have you segmented your own learning into clinical and non-clinical?

This week we chat to Aly Tejani, Acquisitions and Operations Director at A&U Dental, an independent and family-owned dental group that was set up in 2016 and now has 7 practices under its ownership.

Aly discusses his transition from earning an Economics degree at the University of Warwick to pursuing a career in the dental sector after joining his family business in 2016.

He talks about some of the challenges and complexities that many small group owners face when managing multiple locations and the extent to which robust systems, comprehensive data and automation need to be relied on.

Finally he chats about his current responsibilities within the family business and shares what he finds most fulfilling about his role.

Topics:

- Your early career days

- What was the appeal of moving into the dental sector?

- Was the plan to always move in to the family business?

- What challenges do many small group owners face when managing multiple locations?

- To what extent are systems, data and automation relied on?

- Is the dental profession as you expected or have there been some surprises?

- What is the most fulfilling part of what you do?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Dr Alex and Tim Otto, co-founders of the Alcan Dental Cooperative offering practice support solutions for paediatric practices throughout Texas, USA.

They discuss the landscape of dentistry in the United States and specifically in Texas, sharing insights about the beginnings of their careers. They also explore what it's like to be both business partners and spouses and the ground rules they have set for working together.

They continue by explaining how Alcan assists owners of paediatric practices, detailing its origins as a resource for practices aiming to stay independent while ensuring a work-life balance for the owners.

They also share their views on the importance of being entrepreneurial and business-minded to succeed in dentistry today.

Topics:

- What’s your secret to getting the important stuff done and not burning out?

- Talk us through what the USA dental scene looks like and what it’s like in Texas

- Outline your career beginnings

- What it’s like to be business partners and spouses

- Do you have rules around when you turn off the business switch?

- Alcan Dental Cooperative – what support does it offer?

- Do you need to be more nimble, entrepreneurial and business-minded to succeed in dentistry today?

In this special episode of the Dentology Podcast, hosts Andy and Chris discuss marketing principles.

They explore some of the key marketing factors every business should have in place, in particular branding and communications.

Throughout the discussion, Andy and Chris consider a arrange of questions such as:

• How do you want to position your practice?

• Do you know what you want to achieve?

• Does your brand reflect this?

• How do you communicate this to your team? And your patients?

• What messages are you communicating?

For invaluable insights into these key marketing principles that need to be aligned to grow your practice and more, tune in to this episode to hear from Chris and Andy.

**This special episode of Dentology has been brought to you in partnership with Ultimate Dental Business – the ultimate dental business hub, offering top-tier business training for dentists.**

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Julie Dale, dentist and Global Sales Manager at Boutique Whitening.

Julie talks about her dental career and how a short spell of work experience prompted her to decide that dentistry was for her.

She chats about her time working in the NHS for some 14 years after qualifying, shares some of the highs and lows from this time and talks us through the steps she went through before deciding that there were other career opportunities in dentistry aside from the clinical work.

She talks about her short stint at Dental Monitoring and how from there, moved on to work at Boutique Whitening and is now looking after global sales for the company.

She shares her thoughts on whether whitening can be used as a practice/profit builder and talks about future plans for Boutique outside of the UK.

Topics:

- Tell us about your early career days

- How did work experience help you decide that dentistry was for you?

- Where did you qualify from and was your dental school experience good?

- Working in the NHS – what were some of the highs and lows?

- What steps did you go through to decide on a career away from the clinical work?

- Did Covid create the reflection time to consider a new path?

- Working at Dental Monitoring

- Taking on the role of global sales at Boutique Whitening

- Can whitening be used as a practice/profit builder?

- Are there any global plans for Boutique outside of the UK?

This week Andy and Chris are joined by Murray Welch, Sales and Marketing Director at Anglian Dental, surgery design and equipment suppliers.

In this episode, Murray talks about the family business his grandfather started over 30 years ago and his decision to officially join the team back in 2012.

He talks about the charity work he is involved with for the Rapid Relief Team and how this saw him support the fire crews on the fateful day of the Grenfell Tower Disaster.

He reflects on how much dental engineering has changed over the past 15 years or so and how the company has evolved today to also offer build and design services alongside equipment supply and servicing.

He talks about some of the projects his team have been involved with, explains more about some of the challenges they often face, especially during refurbishment projects or when working with clients to set up new squat practices, and shares his top tips for anyone thinking about taking this route for practice ownership.

Topics:

- Your charity work with the Rapid Relief Team

- Tell us about the family business

- Joining the business in 2012

- Has dental engineering changed much over the past 15 years

- What other services does Anglian now offer?

- Why did you branch out into the building/design side of things?

- Tell us about some of the projects you’ve worked on.

- What are the hidden problems when you take on projects?

- What are some of the pros and cons of looking after refurbishments and squats?

- Any top tips for anyone considering a squat practice?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Ahmad Nounu, principal of the Black Swan Dental Spa and Bristol Dental Suite.

Ahmad chats about his early career days, the reasons why he decided to pursue a career in dentistry and buying his first dental practice back in 2011, just 3 years after qualifying! He talks about how he has fully embraced digital technology in the practice, the influences that affected his decisions to adopt this approach and the impact it has had on efficiency.

He goes on to talk about his decision to take over a failing corporate practice during the Covid lockdown period back in 2020 and what he has done differently to ensure that practice is now thriving.

Finally, he chats about the private dental education programme, Private Dental Mentor, that he is a course director for which is designed to ensure associates have everything they need to quickly thrive in private practice.

Topics:

- Your early career days and decision to follow a career in dentistry

- Buying your first dental practice

- Was there a conscious plan to become a principal swiftly?

- How significant was your studying in the USA in developing your practice?

- Did you have an approach to CPD that covered both business and clinical learning?

- Describe your practice and the inspiration for it

- Your reasons for embracing digital technology in your practice

- How has this impacted the efficiency of running a dental practice?

- Why did you decide to take over a failing corporate practice?

- What have you done differently to ensure the practice thrives?

- The Private Dental Mentor Programme

Our guest on Dentology this week is Pav Khaira, dentist, and CEO of the Academy of Implant Excellence.

In this episode, Pav talks about his time at dental school, his early career days and working as an associate.

He goes on to explain about the extensive training he has undertaken in prosthodontics and his focus on implants that has resulted in him being referred to as ‘The Titani-Nerd’, the Chat GPT of implants and the Wikipedia of Implantology!

He explains what drew him towards this element of dentistry and shares his thoughts on how he thinks the world of implants has progressed.

He goes on to talk about his current clinical work and his role as the CEO of the Academy of Implant Excellence. He discusses the approach the UK has taken to implants and explains about some of the common hurdles that you come up against when focussing on implants and the methodology used to manage this.

Topics:

- Early career days

- Were there other options beyond dentistry?

- Your time at dental school

- How did your dental career start?

- Your training in prosthodontics and implants

- What drew you in to this element of dentistry?

- How far into the evolution of digital dentistry has the world of implants got so far?

- The Academy of Implant Excellence: Why did this come about and who is it aimed at?

- Has the UK adopted a different approach to implants?

- Are there common hurdles that come up when focussing on implants?

- Is there a proven methodology to managing this?

Dr Mahrukh Khwaja, founder and CEO of Mind Ninja, joins us again this week and chats to Chris and Andy about her recent work.

She talks about her book ‘Resilience and Well-Being for Dental Professionals’ and shares more about how she now spends her time working 2 clinical days a week alongside managing her many other projects.

She explains more about her recent studies for a diploma in organisational psychology and gives an update on Mind Ninja, the well-being startup providing resilience and well-being training to dental professionals so they can thrive in any environment.

Finally, she talks about the resilience programme she’s currently facilitating for NHS Health Education Midlands and her ‘Mission Mindful’ campaign.

Topics:

- Your book ‘Resilience and Well-Being for Dental Professionals’

- How do you split your time?

- Does working 2 clinical days per week help you stay empathetic to the needs of dentists who can find clinical work burdensome?

- Diploma in Organisational Psychology

- How is Mind Ninja going?

- Is there a shift towards the importance of building resilience?

- Tell us about the Mission Mindful campaign

- Do your toolkits easily transfer into other sectors?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Gary Chapman, Director of Mergers & Acquisitions for the UK & Europe at Portman Dentex.

Having started his career in dentistry over 40 years ago, Gary talks about his early career years, considers what the sector was like back in the 1980’s compared to now and reflects on how dentistry has changed during this time.

He talks about the many different roles he’s been fortunate enough to work in from starting out as a lab technician and running a dental implant company, through to driving the Acquisition Programme at James Hull Associates, leading the growth of the Portman Group, and his more recent role working alongside CEO Sam Waley-Cohen to drive the mergers and acquisitions division at Portman Dentex that has seen the group acquire over 430+ private and specialist practices to date.

Finally, Gary shares his thoughts on dentistry moving forward, considers whether the landscape for dental corporates is changing and lets us into a secret about his skills on the badminton court!

To hear more from one of the leading authorities on the Corporate Private Dental Market, have a listen to this episode.

Topics:

- Tell us about your early years

- Being in dentistry for over 40 years

- What was dentistry like back in the 1980’s?

- Tell us about your varied career and the many roles you’ve worked in

- Has dentistry changed during your career?

- Your early involvement in implants and running a dental implant company

- Involvement in the James Hull Associates buyout

- Driving the Acquisitions Programme and growth of the Portman Group

- Working alongside CEO Sam Waley-Cohen

- Is the landscape for dental corporates changing?

- Has the competitive nature in sport helped you be so successful in business?

In this episode of the Dentology Podcast, hosts Andy and Chris delve into the realm of Business Fundamentals.

They explore the essential factors crucial for business success, emphasising the importance of dental practice owners operating their practices with a business mindset.

Throughout the discussion, Andy and Chris pose key questions that practice owners should ponder:

• How is your business organised?

• Have you assessed your practice's structure?

• Is your team fully aware of the organisational structure?

• Have all roles and responsibilities been clearly defined and understood?

• Is every team member contributing to the advancement of the business?

• Does your team know where to seek guidance?

For invaluable insights into these critical business fundamentals and more, tune in to this episode to hear from Chris and Andy.

**This special episode of Dentology has been brought to you in partnership with Ultimate Dental Business – the ultimate dental business hub, offering top-tier business training for dentists.**

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Paul Abrahams, Owner of SmileMore Dental Care for over 30 years!

Paul talks about his time spent studying dentistry at Guys, his early career days working as an associate and his bold decision to set up a squat dental practice in 1993. He reflects on the challenges faced at the time and how shares his thoughts and opinions on how he feels the people in dentistry and the technology used have changed over the decades.

He also talks about well-being in the profession and also the business side of dentistry that is now considered a non-negotiable to running a successful practice.

He goes on to chat about his decision to sell to Dentex, now part of the Portman Dentex Group, five years ago and explains about his new pattern of working now because of this.

Finally, he goes on to share a few top tips gained from his wealth of experience in dentistry and considers if there are any learnings from team sports to managing a dental team.

Topics:

- Tell us about your early career & qualifying from Guys in 1989

- Setting up a squat practice in 1993

- Owning SmileMore Dental Care for over 30 years

- What were the challenges faced back then?

- What are you thoughts on how the people in dentistry have changed over the decades?

- What about the change in technology?

- Well-being in the profession

- The business side of dentistry – is this a non-negotiable to running a successful practice?

- The decision to sell to Dentex

- Your new pattern of working

- What’s one thing you’ve figured out that most others probably haven’t from your wealth of experience in dentistry?

- Any learning from team sports to managing a dental team?

Our guest this week on Dentology is Tom Chaston, co-founder of AllMedPro, experts in dental indemnity insurance.

In this episode, Tom chats to Chris and Andy about his early career and how he started his own insurance brokerage alongside Adam, his business partner, at the age of 24. He explains about the key challenges faced at the time when starting out in business, reflects on what he would do differently today and discusses some of the highs and lows faced to date.

He goes on to talk about his current work leading AllMedPro, a well-known name within dentistry, the services offered to the profession, and the decision to take on a VC backer in 2021 and what this has since enabled the company to do. Finally, Tom explains what the 3 core policies are that dentists should have as a minimum.

Topics:

- Tell us about your early career

- What have you learnt from your involvement in sport that has helped you in business?

- Starting your own insurance brokerage at 24 years old

- What were the key challenges starting a business?

- What would you do differently today?

- What’s the toughest thing you’ve been through & what impact did it have on your life?

- AllMedPro: what services are offered to the profession?

- Taking on a VC backer in 2021 & what has this enabled you to do?

- Are dentists good at keeping themselves well covered/protected?

- Aside from PI, what are the 3 core policies dentists should have as a minimum?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Michael Alatsaris.

Michael is a dentist and founder of Ergoprox, the world’s first toothbrush designed for teeth next to dentures and large gaps.

In this episode, Michael chats about his early career, what drove him to study dentistry and his time spent as a dental practice owner running a private practice for some 9 years before he decided to sell up.

At this point, Michael’s career ‘took off’ in a completely different direction as he became a pilot and from there, he also took time to focus on his passion for product design which resulted in the development of the Ergoprox Toothbrush.

Michael talks about Ergoprox, the approach he took to bringing a new product to the market and how the business has grown to date with the toothbrush now generally available in dental practices across the UK.

Topics:

- Tell us about your early career

- What drove you to study dentistry

- Did dental school equip you well for being a dentist?

- Being a practice owner

- Why did you decide to sell your practice?

- Being an airline pilot

- Foscusing on product design

- The launch of Ergoprox

- What is the Ergoprox Toothbrush and what problem does it solve?

- How big is education when designing innovative products like this?

- Is the toothbrush now a generally available product in the UK?

- Would you change anything about your career to date?

In this week’s episode of Dentology, Chris and Andy chat to Fiona Dwyer, journalist and former television reporter and planning producer with over 30 years of experience in the media.

In this episode Fiona talks about her childhood and career to date and shares some of the experiences she’s had working in the media industry for the past 30+ years.

She talks about how her career started, reflects on how the industry has changed over the years and talks about some of the famous stars she has had the opportunity to meet and interview. She also shares some top tips on what makes a good news story!

Finally, she talks about her work within the dental sector, how PR is important for dental practices and how she has been working on The Magic Dentist campaign.

Topics:

- Tell us about your early career

- How did your media career start and what was it like back in those days?

- Who have you interviewed? What were they like?

- Are there general principles from being good journalist that we can all build into our lives?

- Does this require a certain personality type to do this?

- Is it a world of smoke and mirrors to get into the press of are there some top tips for doing this yourself?

- What is newsworthy?

- Is PR for dental practices more important than ever with Google reviews being focused on and the new CQC single assessment framework being very patient-focused?

- Working on The Magic Dentist campaign

- If you can take only one learning from your entrepreneurial journey- what is it?