Dental nurse Fiona Ellwood has been awarded the British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
Fiona is the patron and executive director of the Society of British Dental Nurses (SBDN) and also chairs the National Oral Health Group.
She was lately senior lecturer and external examiner at the University of Chester.
Fiona also acts as a key opinion leader and is an advisor for oral health education and preventative programs across the dental arena, as well as infection control and professional practice.
She is a former President of BADN, an examiner for NEBDN and writes prolifically as an editorial board member for Dental Nursing journal.
‘Tireless work’
Welcoming the news, Emma Riley, chair of the SBDN, said: ‘We at the SBDN cannot express how proud we are of Fiona and her well-deserved award and recognition of the tireless work she does – not just for dental nursing but for dentistry as a whole.
‘It’s easy to “talk the talk”, but the key is making things happen. Fiona does this – from the student dental nurse starting on their journey within dentistry to the dental nurse with many years experience, she has given them all a louder voice within the dental community.’
She added: ‘I also passionately believe she has improved patient care with her endless work around health promotion.
‘If I know Fiona, she will feel this award is for all dental nurses not just one person, but it also demonstrates how much she is respected and valued within dentistry and I for one am proud to call her my colleague, mentor and friend’.
Fiona is a trained mentor and has fostered and developed a mentoring culture in a number of areas both within and outside of dentistry.
Her final dissertation for her M.Ed looked very closely at the concept of leadership as a potential mechanism of change, which has given her greater insight to the ever-changing world of health, education and dentistry.
She is the founder of Dental Mentoring Network and a member of Dental Mentors UK.
Fiona said: ‘I am honoured to be included in the Queen’s 2019 Birthday Honours list. My aspirations for dental nursing has always been to lay the foundations so others can have choices, make informed decisions and doors can be opened.
‘The society is taking my visions forward and for that I am eternally grateful, so today I celebrate dental nursing on a different level.’
Link
Society of British Dental Nurses