HEE Midlands and East
The Educational Supervisor: I have been an educational supervisor on twelve occasions and I have enjoyed the whole journey. I feel it is a two way process in that hopefully they have benefited from the knowledge I have gained from the 25 years I have had in general dental practice and equally I gain knowledge from newly qualified dentists and open to discussion on new treatment options . I was a diagnostic radiographer before I did dentistry and now teach radiology and radiography around the West Midlands region to DCPs, FDs and dentists . When I am not lecturing I work full time in general dental practice Monday to Friday and I enjoy most areas of dentistry but particularly oral surgery and cosmetic work.
Outside dentistry I am married with four children and I enjoy sport. I am a qualified swimming coach and football coach and I run a local U11 football side who play on Saturdays.
The FDs who have come to the practice really enjoy the relaxed manner of the practice and also i feel I am very approachable and try to create a relaxed learning environment. I operate an open door policy so FDs benefit from having advice and assistance when required. The greatest complement for me is that the FDs ask to stay in the practice when their FD year is finished
The Practice: The practice is located in a 17th century building in the middle of the cathedral city of Lichfield. It has three well equipped surgery's with qualified support staff with two DCPs qualified to take radiographs. There are two other associate dentists, FD and two part time hygienists. Many of the staff are long standing and very experiencing which enables new FDs settle into the practice easily. All aspects of treatment is carried out except orthodontics , implants and sedation. The practice was established in 1982 and now a lot of patients are bringing there children to the practice now. We pride ourselves on being a friendly family dental practice and the patients get excellent treatment and service from our friendly staff. Most of our patients come to us via recommendation and travel from many outlying villages and towns .
The Area: Lichfield is a small friendly city in the heart of Staffordshire situated approximately 15 miles from Birmingham , easily accessible by car, train or bus. The practice in the city centre very close to the cathedral, the historical landmarks and a beautiful park. The are numerous restaurants, cafes and bars and shops . There are plenty of rental properties close to the practice or within walking distance. Unusually the city centre is a popular place to live.
Our patient base is mainly long established patients with good attendance but as the city is growing and developing there is a constant stream of new patients. The patients are well educated, they appreciate and understand their treatment. This means they usually complete their courses of treatment which makes treating them more satisfying. The area is fluoridated resulting in the children usually having low needs for treatment but, like all cities there are pockets of high needs .
Other Points of Interest: Lichfield has many sporting facilities within the city and within a short distance . There a theatre in the city and many other leisure and entertainment facilities within short distances . Lichfield is lovely place to live and work .The FDs are always happy in the practice and it is actually the practice I did my FD training in 25 years ago. I went off to work at other practices to gain more experience after working at Dam Street for 7 years and brought the practice 10 years ago,with my old educational supervisor actually working for me. I expect one day i will be working for one of my FDs.