Sebastian Evans

The British Dental Association and pressure group Challenge have both stepped up their demands for an overhaul of the government’s NHS dentistry reforms. As previously reported, calls for Units of Dental Activity (UDAs) to be scrapped were made at a major conference organised by the BDA last week to mark the first anniversary of the…

Why did you choose a career in the armed forces? At the time I was attracted by the opportunity to practise dentistry in different locations around the world (clichéd I know, but true). The appeal of working in a practice on a UK high street just wasn’t there. The army also offered an excellent cadetship…

This patient was seen on referral at the maxillofacial department complaining of an intermittent lump under the tongue. His general dentist had referred him, suggesting that this was a salivary gland. On examination, there was a large, raised, fluctuant, bluish swelling under the tongue towards the right side, and the treatment plan was to excise…

In the past, the term ‘money laundering’ was applied only to financial transactions related to the likes of Al Capone and serious, organised crime such as terrorism. If you have recently tried to open a bank account you will be very well aware of the extensive checks and balances required by the Finical Services Authority…

Most dentists will have accumulated significant sums in pension arrangements by the time they reach retirement age. There will usually be some NHS Pension Scheme benefits but often the bulk of a dentist’s pension provision will have been accumulated in personal pensions. Eventually the time comes for funds accumulated in pension plans to be used…

Being a student is a very expensive business. It seems hardly a week goes by without new figures being published charting the rise and rise of student debt. However, universities around the UK are continuing to expand despite the ever-present debt cloud and vocational degrees such as dentistry are particularly popular. Perhaps this is because…

Following on from my last article on treatment failures in periodontal therapy, I now want to look at dental implants. My opinion is that, out of these two fields of dentistry, implant therapy throws up many more potential complications – particularly where patient expectations and emotions are running high. Unlike periodontics, failures in dental implant…

Since the start of the year I’ve been travelling the length and breadth of the UK, delivering workshops and listening to clients tell me what’s going on in dentistry. What’s going on can be read as ‘all doom and gloom’ or as the biggest opportunity in the last 60 years. The doom and gloom merchants…

Elective projects provide students with a great opportunity to take a break from dental school life and satisfy their appetite for adventure. After spending the past four years studying to be a dentist in the East End of London, like many other students, I decided to incorporate some international travel into my short period of…

My next two articles will focus on treatment failures in the fields of periodontal care and dental implant therapy. Failure in treatment can either be relative or absolute. An implant may not integrate. That’s absolute. A patient may not like the appearance of an implant supra-structure despite it meeting all the normal aesthetic criteria. The…

Q. I would like to carry out more cosmetic work but my practice is not in a particularly affluent area. What can I do to encourage my patients to have this type of treatment? A. There are two common barriers to patients asking for cosmetic treatments – one is affordability, and the other is not…

The British Dental Association has challenged those standing for election to the Scottish Parliament on 3 May to solve the problems facing dentistry. The recently launched BDA Scotland 2007 manifesto for dentistry has called for improved access to NHS services, increased funding for primary dental care and the introduction of a properly funded oral health…

Objective Clinical Skills Examinations, or OCSEs as they are more commonly known, are held in trepidation by clinical-stage dental students right across the UK. This type of exam is designed to assess a student’s practical and interpersonal skills in realistic clinical situations, and they are increasingly being used as part of undergraduate dental training. With…

A vital determinant in providing predictable endodontic results is the ability to accurately locate the minor constriction (MC) of the apical foramen (AF). The MC is a natural barrier present in root canal systems and represents the termination point for endodontic instrumentation, irrigation and obturation. Maintaining the MC at its original position and size during…

The dental laboratory is a critical partner in practice success. Or at least it should be. The relationship that dentists develop with laboratories will have a direct effect on scheduling, the quality of patient care and practice stress. Developing a strong relationship with one or more dental laboratories is crucial. Two questions arise when considering…

If you have ever lost patients when you felt like you were offering them the best treatment anywhere, you may have wondered what went wrong. Was it you or them? Maybe you have questioned what more you can do to motivate your patients to do what is in their best interests. Have you ever had…

Periodontal disease often results in the inevitable loss of teeth. For many patients, a clearance in one or both jaws is the only option. This can be psychologically and medically devastating. It may destroy much of what is left of some patients’ self worth. These same patients then often request dental implants to restore their…

When speaking to young dentists about what they want out of their career, most of them will say their own practice, a large but manageable patient base and the chance to perform dentistry to the best of their ability. But what if there was an organisation offering you the opportunity to do all of these…

Incredibly, the majority of adults (55%) have not made a will[1]. Despite it being quite a morose subject to think about, it is vital to consider the practical and financial implications of your death and make provisions for your loved ones, as well as ensuring that your most treasured possessions go to the people you…