Health minister Lord Howe paid tribute to the dedication and enthusiasm of dental teachers at this year’s DDU Educational Awards.
In his keynote address to the awards event, held at the Royal Society, London, Lord Howe said:
‘I’m delighted to have been invited to this prestigious event. It is great to be able to join you in celebrating your successes and achievements, and I look forward to seeing you and your students doing great things in dentistry in the future.
In a unique double for Bristol, the winners of this year’s awards are:
Dental Care Professional Teacher of the Year
Winner: Nikki Rogers, Bristol Dental Hospital
Finalists: Jenny Owens, Leeds Dental Institute; Kathryn Dobson, School of Dentistry, University of Liverpool.
Dentist Teacher of the Year
Winner: Stephen J W Lisney, School of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Bristol
Finalists: Damien Walmsley, School of Dentistry, The University of Birmingham; George Aristidou, King’s College London.
Dentist Teacher of the Year, Stephen Lisney, said: ‘I am honoured to have been nominated by my colleagues and students for this award and delighted to have won.
‘This year it has been doubly good news for Bristol and I think it’s a fitting reward for the dedication and commitment of all the staff who contribute to dental teaching. I hope to see the prize money spent on new learning materials to support students in their studies.’
Also thanking those who nominated her, Nikki Rogers, winner of the DCP Teacher of the Year, added: ‘I also want to thank my students and colleagues for listening to my presentation and helping me keep my nerves in check over the last few weeks.’
Rupert Hoppenbrouwers, head of the DDU said: ‘We were pleased that Lord Howe was able to spare the time to speak to us and answer some of the burning questions from the audience about the Government’s plans for the profession. As he said, quality education is the foundation of excellence in the profession so it was good to get this recognition for all those who took part.’
Dr Gary Marvin, marketing director at Dentsply who support the awards, said: ‘Dentsply is proud to be associated with the DDU Educational Awards as both organisations are totally committed to supporting excellence in dental education. As a further demonstration of this shared commitment, we are delighted that the DDU will this year be supporting our own long-standing Student Clinician Awards that recognises the achievements of students.’
Finalists were awarded £250 each and the winners in each category received an additional £1,000 towards the cost of educational materials for their school and/or deanery.
The event also featured presentations from Dr Alasdair Miller, dental postgraduate dean, and Dr Janine Brooks of the National Clinic Assessment Service who both looked at the effects of regulation on dental professionals and practice.
