College of General Dentistry News

Parliamentary briefing on preventative oral healthcare

Earlier this week, the College and Haleon presented The Dental Health Barometer – the organisations’ joint report on improving the provision of preventative oral healthcare – at a breakfast briefing held in Parliament.

Jon Elliott, Roshni Karia MCGDent, Simon Thornton-Wood PhD, Kate Fabrikant FCGDent

The meeting was one of a series of discussions being held with stakeholders to communicate and gather support for the recommendations identified in the report, which are based on the experience and insight of general dental professionals on how to bridge the gap between intentions and practical delivery of preventative care.

The research underlying the report included a survey of 2,000 UK dental patients and over 500 dental professionals which highlighted inconsistencies in the provision of preventative oral healthcare advice, and rich discussions held with 77 oral health professionals, in all dental team roles, in focus group meetings hosted at eight general dental practices throughout the UK.

Attendees at the meeting were:

  • Sadik Al-Hassan MP (Labour, North Somerset)
  • David Arnold (Director of Communications, Oral Health Foundation)
  • Lewis Atkinson MP (Labour, Sunderland Central)
  • Professor Avijit Banerjee FCGDent (Professor of Cariology & Operative Dentistry at King’s College London and Chair of the College’s Faculty of Dentists)
  • Jon Elliott (Head of Corporate Affairs for Northern Europe, Haleon)
  • Dr Kate Fabrikant FCGDent (Medical Affairs Director for Northern Europe, Haleon)
  • Dr Elizabeth Fisher (Programme Lead for Children and Young People’s, Nuffield Trust)
  • Dr Roshni Karia MCGDent (President of the College)
  • Professor Philip Preshaw (President, British Society of Periodontology)
  • Simon Thornton-Wood PhD (Chief Executive of the College)
  • Dr Jason Wong MBE FCGDent (Chief Dental Officer, NHS England)
  • Philip Worsfold (Head of Dental Public Health, Department of Health and Social Care)



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College of General Dentistry Blog

Why I became a College benefactor and philanthropist

Dr Tom Bereznicki FCGDent, founder of the Tom Bereznicki Charitable Education Foundation and a major donor to the College, talks to Professor Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent, President Emeritus, about his motivation to put something back into the profession

Tom Bereznicki FCGDent (left) and Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent (right)

Nairn Wilson: Tom, what motivated you to become a Founder of the College, the College’s first major benefactor, and a significant College legator? 

Tom Bereznicki: In recent years, I have been increasingly anxious to find ways to put something back into the dental profession, with emphases on making good some of the deficiencies in undergraduate dental education, encouraging early career dentists to develop their skills and knowledge to better meet the ever-increasing expectations of patients, and to enhance the standing and status of dentistry, both in healthcare in general, and in the eyes of the public.

The creation of the College, intended Royal College of General Dentistry, was a bold move to give oral healthcare professionals the benefits enjoyed by all those in healthcare who have their own independent Royal College – career pathways with recognition of enhanced skills, standards set by the profession for the profession, and a community of practice, together with, and very importantly in the case of CGDent, a much-needed, unified voice for the whole of the profession.

Also, I share the vision of the College to elevate the importance of oral health in the eyes of other healthcare professions, politicians and the public. The College initiative was one I identified with and considered worthy of my support, both to get it started and help secure its future.

Nairn Wilson: What are the aims, objectives and aspirations of your Educational Foundation?

Tom Bereznicki: My Foundation was created to support recently graduated and early career dentists and therapists to acquire knowledge and skills they were unlikely to have acquired in their undergraduate training, but which are needed to succeed in everyday practice. The focus is on aesthetic dentistry, occlusion and related aspects of periodontal health, all of which are fundamental to contemporary routine dental care.

Given my experience as a part-time clinical teacher and the interactions I have with newly qualified colleagues, I am increasingly concerned by the disconnect between undergraduate curricula and the reality of everyday clinical practice. Graduates who have not been instructed in at least the basics of aesthetic dentistry, underpinned by a detailed knowledge of tooth morphology, and have little if any idea of how to recognise and diagnose occlusal discrepancies, let alone manage them, are destined to run into all sorts of difficulties in the management of patients.

My Foundation cannot reach out to all new graduates, early career dentists and dental therapists, but it is hoped that the activities of the Foundation, specifically its competitions, will encourage much-needed personal development amongst those embarking on their careers in dentistry, with an emphasis on the importance of interactive, high quality, face-to-face learning. While online learning has a place, and there are many good programmes, much of what new graduates and early career oral healthcare professionals access, typically on their phones, is advertorial material, often presented by self-professed experts with limited experience, either lacking an evidence-base, or frankly wrong and potentially harmful to patients. Determining what is good quality online learning material is challenging, especially for colleagues transitioning to independent practice.   

Nairn Wilson: What is the intended synergy between your Foundation and the College? 

Tom Bereznicki: The Foundation is an independent body which seeks to work in partnership with other organisations and the dental industry to realise its aims and objectives. The link with the College is intended to introduce new graduates and early career oral healthcare professionals to CGDent, and what the College does and can do for them and the profession.

It is hoped that young colleagues, especially those who benefit from the activities of the Foundation, will appreciate the benefits of membership of the College, with a view, over time, to being recognised as an accomplished practitioner – a Fellow of the College. Young colleagues need to appreciate the value and importance of being part of the forward-looking College – part of the new, increasingly powerful, unified voice for dentistry, contributing to standards set by the profession for the profession, taking advantage of a recognised career pathway, mentoring and much more.

Nairn Wilson: With the need to grow and further develop the College, with one of its immediate, pressing priority being eligibility for the award of a Royal Charter, what is your message to Fellows who are not yet donors to the College?

Tom Bereznicki: The College has achieved a great deal from, in effect, a standing start three years ago, and still has a lot to do to achieve its potential, let alone operate on a level playing field with the long-established Royal Colleges, which history tells us, benefited from huge support during their development. There is no ‘something for nothing’. Dentistry must help itself to justify Royal recognition of its own independent college.

Rather than apply a development levy to subscriptions, it is better and more powerful to grow by means of voluntary donations. Yes, these are challenging times for colleagues, but it is also a challenging time for our profession, which needs parity with other mainstream healthcare professions, new UK-wide leadership and direction and recognition in general healthcare and in the eyes of the public – all the things the CGDent aims to deliver. This surely is worthy of support, specifically by those the College has recognised to be leaders in the field.

Nairn Wilson: Tom, thank you for your views and comments, which I very much hope will be read and taken to heart by both all members of the College and colleagues yet to join CGDent. Thank you also for your tremendous ongoing support of the College, which would not be where it is today without your contribution, nor without the support provided by all existing donors.  

Tom Bereznicki is a Fellow and Founder Member of the College and a College legator. The Tom Bereznicki Dental Education Foundation supports the CGDent-GC Award for Foundation Trainees, the Tom Bereznicki Award for Advanced Aesthetic Dentistry and the upcoming occlusion and perio-occlusion symposia for early career dentists.

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College of General Dentistry News

Calling all PDJ authors

The College is reaching out to all past contributors to the Primary Dental Journal – authors, guest editors, peer reviewers, book reviewers and editorial board members – who are invited to attend a reception marking the impending 50th issue.

The event, The Primary Dental Journal: celebrating 50 issues, will take place in London on Thursday 30 January 2025.

First published in 2012, the PDJ was produced for nine years by the Faculty of General Dental Practice of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (FGDP), with the College taking over following the transfer-in of the FGDP over in 2021.

The College has distributed invitations to the reception by email to those PDJ contributors for whom it holds a functioning email address. However, the College does not hold functioning email addresses for all past PDJ contributors, and would like to encourage those to whom this applies to get in touch.

If you are a current or past member of the College and have previously contributed to the PDJ, we have sent an invitation to the email address you have most recently registered with us. We also hold email addresses for those who subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter and those who have registered for an account on the College website (for purposes such as viewing our standards and guidance publications). We have sent invitations to such individuals via those email addresses where we have determined that they belong to a PDJ contributor.

We also hold email addresses for non-member contributors whose papers were published by the College rather than the former FGDP (i.e. those appearing in issues from volume 10, issue 2 [Summer 2021] onwards). Unless subsequently updated via online account registration, these are the email addresses used for correspondence with the Managing Editor of the PDJ prior to publication of the relevant paper. We have sent invitations to these contributors using these email addresses.

However, the College may not hold an email address for any PDJ contributor whose paper was published prior to Summer 2021 (i.e. in volumes 1-9 or volume 10 issue 1) and who is not a member, newsletter subscriber or website account holder. We may also not have been able to verify that a particular non-member email address registered through our website belonged to a given PDJ contributor.

If you are a past PDJ contributor but are not sure which issue your paper was published in, please search the online PDJ Library. You do not need to be a member or otherwise logged in to perform a search.

If you were a contributor to an issue of PDJ published by the College but your email address has changed since publication of your paper(s), please let us know at [email protected]

If you are a past PDJ contributor for whom for any reason we may not hold a verified email address, we would love to hear from you, irrespective of whether you wish to attend this particular event – please write to us at [email protected]

REGISTER TO ATTEND HERE

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College of General Dentistry News

College seeks new dental Trustee

The College is seeking a new dental Trustee to support its historic mission to build a future Royal College for dentistry.

Trustees contribute to the custodianship of the College and are central to the effective delivery of its mission. The Trustee Board works alongside the elected College Council, which oversees the professional affairs of the organisation.

Trustees require an appreciation of the business imperatives underpinning a growing organisation, reconciling delivery of our mission in the patient and public interest with financial viability. They must demonstrate high standards of behaviour and attitude, and have a thorough and up-to-date understanding of the role of a Trustee in a registered charity and membership-based organisation which seeks to embody inclusive professionalism.

To apply to become a dental Trustee, you must currently or recently be a registered dental professional, and you must be a Full Member, Associate Fellow or Fellow of the College at the time of appointment. We are interested in attracting people who can help us to engage widely as we seek to represent the broad range of careers and aspirations within the dental professions. The proportion of women and dental professionals from minority backgrounds is growing, and we want our Trustee Board to be truly inclusive and reflective of our community.

A role profile is available below:

Profile for the role of Trustee

Applications should be made by CV and a covering letter which addresses the requirements described in the role profile and cites two referees. These must be received by Sunday 2 February 2025, addressed to [email protected]

Interviews will be held in mid-February in London.

The successful candidate will be appointed for a three-year term and it is intended that they will be in place by March 2025.

Prospective applicants should be able to attend three half-day online Trustee Board meetings per year, plus a one-day in-person meeting in London. Following appointment, the remaining 2025 meetings will be as follows:

  • Friday 4 April, 10.30-13.30 (online)
  • Friday 11 July, 10.30-13.30 (online)
  • Friday 17 October, 10.00-13.00 (online)

If you have questions or would like a confidential discussion about the role, please contact Simon Thornton-Wood PhD, Chief Executive of the College, at [email protected]

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College of General Dentistry News

College Fellows receive PFA honours

The Pierre Fauchard Academy (PFA), an international dental honours organisation founded in 1936, has conferred awards upon two senior members of the College.

Sir Nairn receiving his Elmer S Best Award medal and plaque. (l-r): Robert Cattoi, PFA International Executive Director; Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent; Dr Pankaj Patel OGW FCGDent, PFA International President; Dr Ghabi Kaspo, PFA Vice-President

Sir Nairn Wilson CBE FCGDent, President Emeritus of the College, has received the Academy’s prestigious Elmer S Best Memorial Award. Named in memory of the founder of the Academy, it is awarded for distinguished contributions of international significance to dentistry, and is given to no more than one dentist from outside the United States in any one year. In making the award, the PFA Board of Trustees congratulated Sir Nairn on his lifetime of service to dentistry, recognising the impact of his work across the globe.

The award was presented in New Orleans at the Academy’s 86th Annual Meeting and International Gala, which was held in October in conjunction with the American Dental Association’s 2024 Annual Convention.

Sir Nairn is the first British recipient of the award in almost 30 years and only the sixth since it was established in 1962. The previous UK-based winners were Martin Rushton in 1967, Cyril Devere-Green in 1973, Gerald Leatherman in 1977, Hamish Thomson in 1991 and Dr John McLean OBE in 1996.

Dr Pankaj Patel OGW FCGDent, the Academy’s International President, congratulated Sir Nairn on joining the illustrious list of recipients:

“It is an honour for the Pierre Fauchard Academy to recognise Sir Nairn. His contributions to dental literature and his support of dental education and dentistry in general are well-known by legions of dentists around the world. We were pleased that Sir Nairn and Lady Wilson could join us at our international gala in New Orleans.”

Thanking the Academy for the award, Sir Nairn said:

“It is an exceptional honour to be recognised by one’s peers nationally; it is humbling to be recognised and honoured by one’s peers internationally, specifically for distinguished contributions of international significance to dentistry.”

Indicating that he will treasure the prestigious honour, Sir Nairn expressed the hope that he would have the opportunity to strengthen his contribution to the activities and mission of the Academy, which are ‘to recognise and develop outstanding leadership in dentistry internationally’. 

Manny Vasant wearing a PFA fellowship stole and holding a plaque commemorating his induction as an honorary fellow of the Academy. (l-r): Dr Pankaj Patel OGW FCGDent; Dr Cheryl Billingsley, PFA President-Elect; Manny Vasant MBE FCGDent; Dr Ghabi Kaspo.

Dr Manny (Manjul) Vasant MBE FCGDent, a general dental practitioner for over 50 years, was inducted as an Honorary Fellow of the Academy – another rare honour for a UK dentist – at the same event.

Dr Vasant is principal of a mixed NHS-and-private dental practice in Croydon, London, and has been staff dentist at Croydon University Hospital since 1985. He is also a registered specialist in prosthodontics and has been placing dental implants since 1994.

A former Fellow, board member and regional diploma tutor of the Faculty of General Dental Practice of the Royal College of Surgeons of England – FGDP, the forerunner of the College – he completed its Diploma in Implant Dentistry and Diploma of Membership in General Dental Surgery.

He is also a Fellow of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Honorary Fellow of the International College of Dentists, and former advisor and organiser for vocational dental training in London, examiner for the National Examining Board for Dental Nurses and recipient of the British Society for General Dental Surgery’s Cottrell Award for contribution to general dental practice. He was awarded an MBE for services to dentistry in 2001.

Commenting on his award from the PFA, Dr Vasant said:

“I cannot fully describe how much I appreciate being the recipient of such a prestigious award. I am truly honoured. Although I have been a Fellow of the PFA for several years now, this award will inspire me to enhance my contribution to the Academy, which has done so much to recognise and promote leadership in dentistry and raise the profile of the profession.”

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College of General Dentistry News

PDJ editor honoured with prestigious international research award

Professor Igor Blum, editor-in-chief of the College’s Primary Dental Journal, has been chosen as this year’s winner of the esteemed International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Ivar Mjör Award.

Professor Igor Blum (right) being presented with the Ivar Mjör Award 2024 by Professor Richard Wierichs, Chair of the IADR Network for Practice-Based Research

Given annually, the award is named in honour of the late President of the IADR, the Norwegian dentist Professor Ivar Mjör, who was a world-renowned researcher and one of the most eminent champions of practice-based dental research in Europe, the US and elsewhere.

The highest award conferred by the IADR for practice-based research, it was given to Professor Blum in recognition of his distinguished contributions to the field, particularly the national and international importance of his translation of practice-based research findings into clinical recommendations.

His impactful publications on the management of failing dental restorations, the reasons for the placement and replacement of direct restorations, and the longevity of posterior composite restorations placed in practice-based settings were among those considered by the selection committee.

Professor Blum coined the term ‘reparative dentistry’, and the citation also notes that his contribution over a quarter of a century to the development, teaching and promotion of the repair of failing yet serviceable dental restorations, as a minimally invasive alternative to replacement, has paved the way for it to become an internationally acknowledged and recognised treatment approach.

Another notable example of his influence are his 2002 standardised diagnostic description criteria for dry socket (alveolar osteitis). ‘Blum’s definition’[i], which is widely referenced in textbooks and presentations and has become the most used definition for dry socket worldwide, has been cited in over 750 journal papers to date.

Professor Blum was also nominated in recognition of his promotion of practice-based clinical, educational and research articles through the Primary Dental Journal (PDJ), in combination with its increased international profile during his tenure as editor. The PDJ is our quarterly, peer-reviewed, professional development journal. Uniquely dedicated to primary dental care, each issue is distributed in print to our UK and international members and subscribers and made available online in over 10,500 academic institutions worldwide.

Professor of Primary Care Dentistry and Advanced General Dental Practice at King’s College London, and a consultant and specialist in restorative dentistry, Professor Blum is only the second UK-based recipient of the Ivar Mjör Award – the first being Professor Sir Nairn Wilson, the PDJ’s inaugural editor.

The award was presented in October in Bern, Switzerland.

[i] Blum IR. Contemporary views on dry socket (alveolar osteitis): a clinical appraisal of standardization, aetiopathogenesis and management: a critical review. Int J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2002 Jun;31(3):309-17. doi: 10.1054/ijom.2002.0263.

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College of General Dentistry News

Oral medicine, leadership and TMD – PDJ themes for 2025

The College has announced the themes and guest editors for the 2025 issues (volume 14) of its Primary Dental Journal (PDJ).

(l-r) 2025 PDJ guest editors: Dr Ziad Al-Ani, Dr Emma Hayes and Professor Sreenivas Koka FCGDent

The Spring issue will be a general edition with articles covering a wide range of topics relevant to general dental practice. The 50th issue of the PDJ, it is expected to be published in April.

The Summer issue will be the first to be dedicated to oral medicine. Due out in July, it will be guest-edited by Dr Emma Hayes.

The Autumn issue, devoted to leadership in dentistry, will be guest-edited by Professor Sreenivas Koka FCGDent and will go to press in late September.

The Winter issue will be the first thematic edition of the PDJ to explore temporomandibular disorders (TMD). Guest-edited by Dr Ziad Al-Ani, it will be distributed in December.

Uniquely dedicated to primary dental care, PDJ is the College’s quarterly, peer-reviewed, professional development journal. In partnership with one of the world’s leading journal publishers, each issue is printed and distributed to the College’s UK and international members and subscribers, indexed in PubMed/MEDLINE and Scopus, and made available online in over 10,500 academic institutions worldwide.

Dr Hayes is a Consultant and Clinical Lead in Oral Medicine at King’s College London Dental Institute, with special interests in facial pain and paediatric oral medicine conditions. After qualifying as a doctor from the University of Oxford in 2008, she worked in the north of England and gained Membership of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. She then studied dentistry on King’s College London’s three-year programme for medical graduates, also working part-time in oral and maxillofacial surgery. Graduating in 2013, she completed specialty training in oral medicine at the Eastman Dental Hospital in 2019. She also holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education from University College London and contributed to the 2023 update of the Oral Medicine Specialty Training Curriculum.

Professor Koka is Dean of the University of Mississippi Dental School. In addition to qualifying as a Doctor of Dental Surgery, he holds a Master’s in Prosthodontics from the University of Michigan, an MBA from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a Master’s in Applied Sciences from Johns Hopkins University and a PhD from the University of Nebraska. He was the founder and owner of Premium Dental Editing in Rochester, Minnesota, and of both Koka Dental Clinic and the non-profit Career Design in Dentistry in San Diego. He has been a lecturer at the University of Michigan and University of California Los Angeles, and a professor at Loma Linda University, the University of Nebraska and the Mayo Clinic. Author/co-author of over 100 peer-reviewed articles and nine book chapters, he is co-founder of the Future Leaders in Prosthodontics (FLiP) programme and founder of the Shaping the Future of Implant Dentistry (SHIFT) leadership workshop series. Brought up in Romford, he emigrated to the United States at the age of 19 and is one of 16 dentists in his family.

Dr Al-Ani is a Senior Lecturer and Senior Recognised-Excellence-in-Teaching Fellow at the University of Glasgow Dental School, and former professor of Temporomandibular Disorders at the College of Medicine and Dentistry. He graduated BDS and completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Damascus, before being awarded an MSc in Prosthodontics and PhD on temporomandibular disorders and occlusion at the University of Manchester. He then became a Clinical Teacher in Restorative Dentistry and Research Co-ordinator for the TMD clinic at Manchester, later obtaining Membership of the Faculty of Dental Surgery of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy and a Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice. He is a former Director of the International Association for Dental Research’s Prosthodontics Research Group, former member of the editorial board of the Journal of Prosthodontics, and author of the books ‘Temporomandibular Disorders: A Problem-Based Approach’ and ‘Practical Procedures in Dental Occlusion’. 

Submissions will be accepted for the issue on leadership until 7 January 2025 and for the issue on TMD until 7 April 2025. Submissions on any other topic relevant to primary dental care can be made until 7 July 2025 for consideration for the Spring 2026 general issue. Instructions for authors are available here.

Dr Al-Ani’s paper, Whiplash-associated temporomandibular disorders: a review article (PDJ vol. 12, no. 1, March 2023) has been made available for all dental professionals to download free of charge.

He was also author of Temporomandibular Joint Osteoarthrosis: a review of clinical aspects and management (vol. 10, no. 1, March 2021) and Occlusion and Temporomandibular Disorders: a long-standing controversy in dentistry (vol. 9. no. 1, April 2020), and co-author of Occlusion on a single implant-supported crown: any differences? (vol. 11, no. 2, June 2022).

These are available in the online PDJ Library to College members and PDJ subscribers, as is Dr Hayes’ paper, An overview of vesicobullous conditions affecting the oral mucosa, (vol. 5 no. 1, March 2016).

Members can read these articles by logging in via the button below, then clicking ‘Access the PDJ Library’:

PDJ MEMBER ACCESS

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College of General Dentistry Event

London meet-and-greet

Friday 3 – Saturday 4 October 2025, 9.00am – 5.00pm, London

Hall N7, ExCeL London, Royal Victoria Dock, 1 Western Gateway, London E16 1XL

The College invites all dental professionals to visit its exhibition stand (B29) at Dentistry Show London 2025.

College members and non-members alike are encouraged to come and introduce themselves, to find out more about the College and have their queries answered.

Perhaps you have questions about your membership or how to access your benefits? Or want to know whether you’re eligible for Full Membership, Associate Fellowship or Fellowship? Or you wonder what Life Fellowship is, or how to add your qualifications to the Member Register?

Maybe you’re a former member of FGDP(UK) uncertain of your College status, or the correct way to present your Faculty post-nominals?

Or perhaps you’re a non-member who’s not yet heard much about the College and just wants to find out why we were set up, what our plans are or how we can help you in your career?

Whatever your query, senior College members and staff will be there throughout the conference to help you out, and have live access to College systems to help solve membership queries on the spot.

Or even if you don’t have a query, we were be delighted to meet you!

The College is also an education partner for Dentistry Show London, hosting two lectures.

Dentistry Show London gives you access to over 180 exhibitors and 4,000 fellow dental professionals, and also offers 100 CPD lectures. It’s FREE to attend for all registered dental professionals.

REGISTER HERE FOR FREE

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College of General Dentistry Event

From disclosure to action: domestic abuse and the dental professional’s duty

Saturday 4 October 2025, 3.15pm-4.00pm, London

Preetee Hylton RDN

Dental Care Professionals Hub, Hall N7, ExCeL London, Royal Victoria Dock, 1 Western Gateway, London E16 1XL

This lecture will be delivered by Preetee Hylton RDN, Associate Member of the College and President of the British Association of Dental Nurses.

A full-time dental nurse and safeguarding lead at a private dental practice in London, Preetee is an Associate Examiner for the National Examining Board for Dental Nurses and delivers the NCFE CACHE Level 3 Diploma in Principles and Practice in Dental Nursing. A former receptionist, practice manager, lead dental nurse and clinical mentor to student dental nurses, she holds the NEBDN National Certificate in Dental Nursing, BDA Education Certificates in Oral Health and in Dental Radiography, a Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning Sector qualification and a Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement, and in 2021 completed the DDS Treatment Coordinator Programme. A founding member and the former Study Club Co-Director of the ITI UK & Ireland Dental Nurses community, she is an honorary ambassador for the Mouth Cancer Foundation, a member of the editorial board of Dental Nursing, and a past contributor to the Primary Dental Journal.

CPD:

  • 0.75 hours

This lecture will be free to attend for both members and non-members of the College, and is one of two College sessions at Dentistry Show London 2025 (DSL25), a two-day conference hosting over 100 CPD lectures in 6 theatres, 180 exhibitors and 4,000 dental professionals.

College representatives will also available throughout the conference at the CGDent exhibition stand (B29) to talk to delegates about our vision for the profession, the benefits of membership and fellowship, and to answer questions.

It is not possible to register for specific lectures in advance, but those wishing to attend should register for DSL25 either in advance or on the day. Registration is free for all registered dental professionals.

REGISTER HERE FOR FREE

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College of General Dentistry Event

AI in dentistry – an indemnity perspective

Friday 3 October 2025, 9.15am-10.00am, London

Helen Kaney FCGDent

Keynote Theatre, Hall N7, ExCeL London, Royal Victoria Dock, 1 Western Gateway, London E16 1XL

This lecture will be delivered by Helen Kaney FCGDent, Deputy Head of the Dental Division at the Medical and Dental Defence Union of Scotland, and a dually qualified dentist and solicitor.

Helen qualified BDS from Glasgow University in 1987 and spent many years in general dental practice as well as working as a clinical assistant in conservative dentistry and prosthodontics at Glasgow Dental Hospital and at Guy’s Hospital in London. She developed an interest in law and ethics early in her career and studied law, obtaining an LLB, and then trained and worked as a solicitor for several years, acting for doctors and dentists in clinical negligence claims, regulatory matters and Fatal Accident Inquiries (Coroner’s Inquests) on the instructions of UK indemnity providers. She has significant experience in advising and assisting dentists in the UK and Ireland and in several international jurisdictions, and spent 14 years at Dental Protection as a Dentolegal and Senior Dentolegal Adviser and latterly as Medico and Dentolegal Services Team Lead and Head of Dental Services, Scotland. She completed an MBA at Strathclyde Business School and is a Fellow of the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine of the Royal College of Physicians. She served as an elected National Representative on the College Council from 2019-2025.

CPD:

  • 0.75 hours

This lecture will be free to attend for both members and non-members of the College, and is one of two College sessions at Dentistry Show London 2025 (DSL25), a two-day conference hosting over 100 CPD lectures in 6 theatres, 180 exhibitors and 4,000 dental professionals.

College representatives will also available throughout the conference at the CGDent exhibition stand (B29) to talk to delegates about our vision for the profession, the benefits of membership and fellowship, and to answer questions.

It is not possible to register for specific lectures in advance, but those wishing to attend should register for DSL25 either in advance or on the day. Registration is free for all registered dental professionals.

REGISTER HERE FOR FREE

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