Dental education raises the temperature in the capital

London was the undisputed champion of dental education this weekend (13 and 14 June) as two educational heavyweights set out their stalls in the UK capital.

Dentistry LIVE stood shoulder to shoulder with Ivoclar Vivadent’s International Expert Symposium (IES) as the blistering June sun announced the arrival of the British summer.

And what could have been a clash of two dental titans instead went to demonstrate the vibrancy of modern aesthetic dentistry and the power of partnership.

Between them, the two events welcomed more than a thousand dentists through the doors of London’s Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre (QEII) in the shadow of Big Ben.

Delegates from all over the UK, Ireland and mainland Europe made the journey to the capital to partake in two programmes of unsurpassed dental education. Each event had a unique approach, with the IES looking closely at the cutting edge of aesthetic dentistry, while Dentistry LIVE’s broad scope offered an astounding breadth of content and a varied cross section of hands-on courses.

The sprawl of the QEII Conference Centre hosted sessions on topics as diverse as the aesthetics of monolithic solutions and modern adhesive technology, to the use of lasers in practice and minimally invasive paediatric dentistry.

A continental air was particularly evident at the Ivoclar event, where every presentation was simultaneously translated into German, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian.

Under the tagline ‘The Quality of Esthetics’, the IES boasted a series of lectures put together in association with the King’s College London Dental Institute.

Robert Ganley, Ivoclar Vivadent’s CEO, explained the thinking behind the symposium in his introductory address to the crowd.

‘These programmes have a simple objective,’ he said.

‘We try to assemble the best people, talking on the best topics, in the best place. We developed the IES because we feel a responsibility to educate and inform.’

Darryl Muff, Ivoclar Vivadent’s managing director in UK and Ireland, echoed the sentiment, adding: ‘It’s our pleasure to host the IES. We’re very proud to welcome everyone to London and the UK.’

Dentistry LIVE played its part in international relations too, welcoming its furthest-flung delegates from the Middle East. With more than 40 speakers across nine different tracks, it addressed a host of different aspects of dentistry.

Boasting an entire room dedicated to minimally invasive dentistry, and other sessions catering to team members and budding entrepreneurs, it lived up to its own motto of ‘Bridging the dental education gap’ admirably.

A full exhibition rounded out the event and even this demonstrated the commitment of the delegates to developing their dentistry, with one key exhibitor completing a deal worth £180,000 by the end of the show.

By the close of play on Saturday the figures were simple, adding up to an experience that was more than the sum of its parts: one venue, two events, and more than a thousand satisfied dental professionals.

Dentistry LIVE will return to the QEII Conference Centre next year – watch out for more announcements at www.dentistrylive.co.uk.

Favorite
Get the most out of your membership by subscribing to Dentistry CPD
  • Access 600+ hours of verified CPD courses
  • Includes all GDC recommended topics
  • Powerful CPD tracking tools included
Register for webinar
Share
Add to calendar