Apr 17, 2025
Hello and Happy Easter.
I know the weather this weekend is not forecast to be great but it has been amazing to have some sunshine and even a bit of warmth over the last few weeks.
The header picture, teddy bears, is not exactly what you expect from your dentist. You might well ask what they have to do with teeth! Nothing really but a lot to do with Rob. Keep reading to get an insight into ‘the man behind the mask’!
As usual I have been tardy with keeping in touch. A feeble excuse but I’m going to use it anyway. I am normally a ‘find the good point/positive person’ so the words ‘I’m glad to see the back of…’ don’t usually pass my lips. But in January these exact words were definitely in my mind, if not on my lips.
We (hopefully) managed to appear like swans through 2024, calm and serene but under the surface we were paddling madly. It took an entire 12 months to find and retain new staff members when others left. I was beginning to get a complex about how horrid I must be to work for. However we now have a fabulous team, all settled in and enjoying working here. Fingers crossed no one else moves away or such like in the near future.
Team
I introduced Laura (dentist) and Kensie (Reception) in the last newsletter and both have settled in really well. Laura has been a great success. She has arrived into the practice, looked at how we do things and joined right in with that. So for clients it feels like the same level of service and friendliness.
I have to say Rob is mightily relieved as it takes pressure off him. We went on holiday in March and for a change he was not on call. No emergency calls while on the ski lift or worse, when he was downing a sneaky beer!
Joining the team we have two nurses. We survived 2024 with Kat, a long-term locum nurse who is amazing, and agency staff - sometimes not so amazing!
Zoe has worked as a nurse in another practice in Salisbury for 5 years and applied for the job because she fancied a change. Her background includes a stint in hairdressing and running her own cleaning company, so her customer service skills are A1. When not at work she is to be found on her allotment digging. We are all looking forward to fresh veg coming our way from the summer/autumn glut.
Harriet, who has joined us as a trainee dental nurse started her working life as a manager in a warehouse and eventually moved into dentistry. Why? When asked she said she has always loved teeth and wanted to be in dentistry.
She has worked in dental practices for several years, initially on reception and then as a treatment coordinator. In fact, it was Kensie who introduced her to the practice when we were advertising for a nurse as she knew Harriet wanted to try her hand at this.
Charity
As you may remember, the charity we have supported over the last year was Wilton Riding for the Disabled also knows as the Pembroke Centre. I did a 100km walk and Rob did 50km in support of this raising £210. Referrals of new clients from you guys means you raised £910 - a total of £1120 for the charity. Thank you for the incredible support. We really appreciate the personal recommendations. This is by far the best praise we can receive.
Laura has requested support this coming year for a charity close to her heart, the Ronald McDonald House in Southampton. Her oldest daughter Olivia, now 3,was born 10 weeks early and being able to stay there meant she and Mark could be close to her whilst she was in the NICU at Princess Ann in Southampton. Indeed over the years we have had numerous clients who stayed here while their children were ill and this felt like a charity the entire team could relate to.
Lots of you ask us what walking challenge we have planned this year for the charity and the answer is…none. I have ‘tweaked’ some ligaments in my knee and the physio has suggested no more than 30 mins of walking per day while I rehab it. As we do approximately 3km per day walking up and down the stairs at work, walking outdoors is not on the cards. I am completing a lot of crosswords and sudoku currently but so looking forward to being able to get out and about again! I’ll just have to plan a mega challenge for next year!
Consent for minors
As we get new team members, we gain information about what happens in other practices. One of the things that has been mentioned is that ideally, we should have written permission if someone other than a parent is bringing a minor to an appointment. It is all to do with consent to treatment.
As Rob and I know all of our clients really well it is not something we have considered necessary before. Often, we already know the grandparent, aunt etc who is bring the child along.
As the team expands it seems sensible to have a more formal arrangement in place. Therefore, when you are next at the practice, we ask that you complete paperwork giving permission for someone, other than a parent, to bring an under 16 year old to appointments. If you have any queries on this, please feel free to contact us to discuss it.
Whitening
Another tweak to what we do is with whitening top ups. As with lots of things, research is ongoing and protocols update. It is now a requirement for whitening trays that have not been used for a while to be check by a clinician to ensure a good fit, before extra whitening gel is dispensed.
What we suggest you do if you require more gel so you can keep your whitening topped up is to bring your trays along to a routine hygienist appointment which means you don’t have to attend for a separate visit.
The really important bit to go with this is….you need to call/text/email a week before your visit to advise us you require more gel, which we then set aside for you. The risk of just turning up is that all the gel will be allocated and we won’t have any to dispense to you.
Invisalign
I wanted to let you know about our current invisalign offer. I don’t normally put anything in here about teeth per se, but this is a great opportunity if a straight white smile has been on yours or a friends/family members wish list for a while.
Rob is handing any new Invisalign cases over to Laura, who is Invisalign qualified. His arthritis can make the tiny detail work needed for this a bit difficult at times. Needless to say, Laura is chuffed as she loves her invisalign!
You may or may not know that Invisalign categorises treatment according to the number of aligners you need and Laura currently offers options up to 20 or up to 26. And she has driven a hard bargain with the lab to get a fee reduction so she can pass it along to you.
Invisalign Go (up to 20 aligners) now £3600 Previously £3825 Saving £285
Invisalign Go+ (up to 26 aligners) now £3995 Previously £4255 Saving £260
Savings not to be sneezed at…but there is more. Laura is also including whitening normally £183 with Invisalign (£383 as a standalone treatment).
So, the actual saving on the treatment is
£468 for 20 aligners Invisalign Go
£443 for 26 aligners Invisalign Go+
If you would like to find out more give the reception team a call and they will be happy to chat with you to answer any queries.
And so to the Teddy Bears.
Meet the Jukes Teddy Bear family (all three bears belong to Rob).
The largest is Ted which was given to him when he was one year old. When he was first working, he did a lot of travelling on his own and decided to bring a teddy bear for company. Not wanting to damage his old bear he bought ‘Little Ted’, the medium sized one who has travelled many places with him over the years.
With the limited baggage one is now allowed to bring on flights (without paying an arm and a leg), Rob sometimes found it difficult to fit Little Ted in so Saoirse, our daughter bought him ‘Tiny Ted.
The reason I have included them here is, Little Ted/Tiny Ted now have an Instagram/Facebook page and I though I would give it a shout out to increase their following. Rob is keen to make Little Ted famous! If you fancy following their (Robs) travels the links for Instagram and Facebook are below. I must warn you that Little Teds page is a bit like 'Where’s Wally' book, you have to search for the bear. And the other warning is he likes his food and drink so a lot of pubs etc feature. I have become a casualty of this particular interest. Enjoyment of food or a drink has to wait until the Teddy Bear pic has been taken!
On another note, I have been reprimanded by our web design and optimisation team. I have used the Blog page on the website for our newsletter and Google does not like this. Seemingly a blog should be on one topic and related to the business (and something Google likes). We get the majority of our new clients on personal recommendation but the next biggest referral source are our google reviews. If we are not visible on Google we don't get this business.
I will find a different medium through which to send out the news but the blog will need to alter. I promise not to suddently start sending lots of marketing things, but blogs on relevant health and teeth topics that I think will interest you.
Finally, we are closed over the Easter weekend closing on Thursday 17th at 5pm, reopening at 8am on Tuesday 22nd. If you are registered with the practice and require urgent dental advice over this period just call the practice on the normal number 01722413311, and select the option that will put you through to Rob.
Hope you all have a Happy and Chocolate filled Easter break.
Regards
Niamh, Rob, Laura and the Gentle Dental team