Shaina Lawrence (affectionately known as Shay) qualified as a dental therapist from the Royal London School of Medicine and Dentistry and joined Refresh Dental in Twickenham in January 2020.
She understands the benefit of both these gifts, having been gifted a solid role in a practice that encourages its staff to fly, too – utilising their full Scope of Practice and building on their skillset.
The practice principal is the highly regarded Dr Olumide Ojo. Better known as Mide, the cosmetic dentist has a huge passion for restoring smiles in a conservative way – and Shay buys into this ethos with equal enthusiasm.
‘Friendly and gentle’, Shay delivers a full range of treatments to her West London clientele. She is both prevention-focused and passionate about improving the oral health of her patients.
She began her dental career as a trainee dental nurse at King’s College London in 2014, which provided a firm foundation for her current role as a dental therapist.
Shay explains: ‘As a dental nurse, I was able to rotate in different departments, including special care, restorative, consultant clinics, oral surgery, emergency care – and paediatric clinic. I picked up so many useful skills and knowledge, and it was during my training that I fell in love with paediatric dentistry. This experience gave me a head start, as I already had a good understanding of patient care, communication, dental anatomy, instruments, procedures and infection control.’
On Refresh dental’s website, her profile reads: ‘Shay cares for smiles of all ages but has a special interest in treating young children.’ So, just why is she so passionate about paediatric care?
Shay says: ‘The oral health survey of five-year-olds in 2017 showed that just under a quarter have tooth decay (PHE National Dental Epidemiology Programme for England, 2017). As a DCP, it’s my job to help prevent this. I believe it’s key to teach children the importance of good oral health habits from a young age, so I try to make appointments as engaging and fun as possible.
‘Early dental visits are so important as they help familiarise children with the dental environment and, just as significantly, provides parents with vital information to help protect their little one’s teeth at home – and get them into good habits throughout their lifetime.’
Full circle
Which, rather fittingly, takes us back full circle to the ‘roots and wings’ analogy.
With research from Oral-B suggesting 70% of parents find it stressful ensuring their children regularly pick-up a toothbrush, getting the key oral health messages across to parents as well as young patients is key.
Shay says: ‘Encouraging parents and caregivers to prioritise oral hygiene at home is key. If the parents are on board and take an active role in caring for their child’s teeth, children are less likely to suffer from dental diseases.’
‘I also reinforce the importance of a healthy diet at every appointment with both child and parent – it’s important that caregivers understand the impact that a diet high in sugar has not only to their child’s oral health but to their overall general health and wellbeing, too.’
She adds: ‘For me, prevention and minimally invasive dentistry is one of the most important areas within our profession. Dietary advice, dental prophylaxis and minimally invasive dental restoration play a huge role in preserving a healthy dentition. Seeing children overcome their dental anxieties, make positive changes and genuinely look forward to seeing me is the most rewarding aspect of my job. I also love that I can carry out my full scope as a dental therapist, including extractions, crowns and restorations.’
At paediatric dental visits, she likes to discuss toothbrushing tips, early childhood caries and explain how to detect it as well as talk about the link between diet and dental decay. ‘I find that hands-on demonstrations and diagrams make it easier to communicate the information. It’s important to keep the message clear and simple and answer any questions or concerns they may have.’
Shay adds: ‘I make toothbrushing as fun as possible, so it doesn’t feel like a chore for parent or child. I recommend the Disney Magic Timer app by Oral-B, which encourages children to brush for longer and rewards them with stickers and badges when they do so. Another favourite of mine is the Brush DJ app. Brushing together as a family also make it more engaging.
‘The Strong Teeth, Strong Kids material produced by Oral-B in conjunction with Dr Peter Day at University of Leeds is invaluable. I particularly love the Healthy Eating Can Protect Teeth resources. We have these in practice and they are great for educating parents on healthy eating habits and the link between nutrition and dental decay. The leaflets contain a great list of tooth-friendly foods and snacks and also foods that can damage the teeth and cause decay. This provides parents with take-home messages rather than them having to commit to memory.’
Shay also utilises the Oral-B Test Drive – the in-clinic unit that allows the patient to experience the benefits of electric toothbrushes in the chair. She uses it with nearly every patient and says she ‘couldn’t work without it’.
‘I usually get my patients to demonstrate how they brush at home; this allows me to modify any bad habits they have and also point out areas that need improvement. It’s perfect for encouraging patients to switch from a manual to an electric as they get a hands-on feel for the brush. It wins them over nearly every time.
‘Personally, I try to encourage the use of an electric toothbrush as early as possible due to the evidence of superior plaque removal. The paediatric electric toothbrushes have some great features to help kids develop great oral care habits. They have softer bristles which are gentle on the gums, the two-minute built-in timer teaches children to brush for the correct amount of time, they come in funky colours and designs making brushing fun and the six years’ plus electric toothbrushes come with a pressure sensor, which aids with independent brushing.
So, does she have any tips to share to help motivate younger patients?
Shay says: ‘Disclosing tablets are my secret weapon in motivating children. I try to disclose at every appointment not only to show them the areas they are missing when cleaning their teeth but to also record their plaque score. I set a target to reduce this score by a certain amount at the next appointment and I find this really excites and motivate the patient to improve. Many become pretty competitive with their siblings, which is hilarious at times. A good selection of stickers is great for bribing at times, too.’
Of course, the luxury of time is everything, which is why Refresh offers extended appointments for their paediatric patients, ‘so they don’t feel rushed and we can really take our time to educate and treat’.
Shay adds: ‘It’s also pretty handy that we have a TV on the ceiling with Netflix so they can pick their favourite shows to watch during treatments, it really helps distract them. Getting them engaged and reducing anxiety make the whole dental experience much more pleasant for everyone.’