Perio is my passion. However, it came to me later in my career after 16 years in general practice. It was around this time that I was lucky enough to be appointed as Clinical Lecturer in Restorative Dentistry at Glasgow Dental School, and it was during the next 5 years that I would feel inspired to learn everything there was to know about Clinical Periodontology and pass that knowledge on to my students.
During my time in general practice, I recognised that there were some patients with periodontal disease that I could not stabilise, no matter how much time I spent helping them with oral hygiene, educating them on the disease, or treating them with deep scaling. I was spending inordinate amounts of time with patients and given the structure of the statement of dental remuneration within NHS practice at the time, I was probably running at a financial loss. Many patients were then referred to secondary care to help achieve what I could not. It was only when I came to teach the topic, part of which involved me spending many sessions in the periodontal department in the dental school, that I realised the complexity of the process of treating such patients.
One of the most important factors in treatment of patients is time, alongside an in-depth knowledge of the clinical guidance, and the different techniques available. On many an occasion in practice I was armed with a cavitron (if I was lucky) and maybe one or two hand instruments. It soon became clear that I could not effectively manage patients with severe and very severe forms of the disease. Patients with very severe forms of the disease have often lost teeth, or will lose teeth as part of the treatment to make them stable, so these patients require a multi-disciplinary approach.
It was upon reflection of this that I decided to do more, so in June of 2023, I gained an MSc in the subject with distinction, from the University of Central Lancashire. It was a difficult but rewarding 2 years during this time, but the drive to be able to provide excellent periodontal care to patients in Scotland, where there is a huge need for more complex periodontal treatment, helped me focus and succeed. The periodontal programme at UCLan is excellent, as is the programme lead, Dr Flavio Pisani. The teaching around periodontal non-surgical and surgical skills is second to none, and I am thankful that I chose such an inspiring mentor, who continues to mentor me to this day.
It has been a gift to be able to teach aspiring dentists and it is one that I am grateful for every day. The students at Glasgow Dental School are amazing, gifted individuals, with a real thirst for knowledge and experience, enabling them to be excellent and caring clinicians for their patients. I am delighted to see them on social media fulfilling their passions, and I am grateful that they continue to support me also, as I strive to provide an excellent service for my patients as part of the amazing multi-disciplinary team here at Vermilion. They often request to come to the clinic and shadow that work that we do, which we as a team welcome wholeheartedly. The door is open to anyone who would like to experience our work.
However, my former students are just some of our wonderful referrers, and it has been a pleasure to meet those individuals at our cpd and social events over the past 2 years. I always enjoy picking up the phone to fellow colleagues to discuss cases and work together to give our patients what they require and help them to remain healthy. In 2024, we have lots of exciting events in the pipeline for our referrers, so watch this space! We do encourage our referrers to get in touch with us over any queries or concerns they may have, however small.
The perio team at Vermilion work incredibly hard to provide a welcoming and caring environment for our patients. My fellow colleague Dr Louise O’Dowd, and our hygiene therapists, Michaela Zilinska, Debbie McKenzie and Jennifer Foster, love what they do both in the clinic and when teaching at CPD events.
As part of the wider team at Vermilion, we provide non-surgical and surgical periodontal treatment and implant care. We are lucky to have the most up to date equipment and lots of time to spend educating our patients and providing them with the treatment they require. We are also skilled at providing treatment for mucogingival defects such as recession, which can lead to sensitivity and poor aesthetics, closure of black triangles, crown lengthening, and treatment of acute periodontal conditions.
The take home message that I would like to convey is that periodontal treatment works, when carried out correctly and when there is enough time to do so. We are lucky to have the luxury of time at Vermilion, and our patients always leave with a smile on their face and full or motivation to take care of their oral hygiene and move forward with treatment. We help them to see that periodontal treatment is probably the best investment they could make towards their dental and general health. The end point of treatment is when we can discharge patients back to their own dentist. Following the guidance, this can take up to a year, but the effort is entirely worth it, and the happy and healthy patient is the enormous reward at the end.
