“I always wanted to be a dental nurse from a small child. I always played being the dental nurse and I would often try to stick tin foil on to my sister’s teeth.
I have worked at the same practice for the last twenty nine years and I have gained qualifications in Dental Nursing, Dental Health Education and Dental Management. I have also gained the Diploma in Radiography from Keele University. I am trained in Advance Implant Nursing.
My role now is Senior Coordinator Implant Nurse.
I am as passionate about the job now as I was when I was a young sixteen year old with pigtails. Dentistry has altered an awful lot in the last twenty nine years, but the Practice I work in has always been leading edge. The Principal who I am a Coordinator/Implant Nurse for, is as passionate about his job as he was twenty nine years ago and his work is outstanding.
I love my job and this has been passed on to my daughter who worked with us for one year as a junior nurse and is now at Leeds University training to be an hygienist.
Dental nursing is a profession that is second to none, you meet and encounter exciting challenges every day. The Practice I work for is in a small town, but we have patients attending from France, Spain, Thailand, America and Southern Ireland and various parts of Great Britain.
The qualities that make a top dental nurse is enthusiasm, thinking out of the box, understanding techniques used, caring about that person in the dental chair not just as a patient, but as a human being, juggling the various roles of a dental nurse coordinator, working beyond what is asked of you.
A lot of the patients have known me, since I was that young sixteen year old with pigtails and have watched my career with interest and they have been an important part of my life. I feel lucky to have been part of a career that I enjoy and still find challenging. I look forward to the next twenty years and what the future brings in dentistry and to the dental nurse profession. I am sure the role of an Implant Nurse is going to become more challenging and exciting.”