The Dentistry Awards – a career-enhancing aspiration

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Thomas Sealey – winner of Best Young Dentist South East at The Dentistry Awards 2015

Dentistry speaks to Thomas Sealey, winner of Best Young Dentist South East at The Dentistry Awards 2015.

Dentistry magazine (DM): How do you feel to have won Best Young Dentist South East at The Dentistry Awards?
Thomas Sealey (TS): I am overwhelmed. I have worked really hard to be the best dentist I can be and I feel so privileged and proud that other esteemed professionals recognise my hard work with this award.

DM: Did you enjoy the evening?
TS: The evening reached far beyond any expectations I may have had. It was an exciting and entertaining experience and I felt like we had been invited to an exclusive award ceremony like the Oscars. The venue was fabulous and the whole night was spectacular.

DM: Why did you choose to enter The Dentistry Awards?
TS: I’ve always read Dentistry magazine and a lot of the new techniques that I try clinically are introduced in this magazine. It always publishes great dentists doing innovative things and challenging modern concepts in dentistry.

To be recognised by the magazine and those professionals who are responsible for writing, it is a personal and career-enhancing aspiration, which I really never thought I would achieve.

‘Go above and beyond’

DM: What do The Dentistry Awards mean to you?
TS: These awards recognise the best in the profession. They show both our peers and our patients that we go above and beyond what is considered the standard of good practice. Being part of The Dentistry Awards underlines your commitment to excellence within the profession.

DM: What inspired you to enter the dental profession?
TS: I have always loved science and art. Dentistry combines those two passions for me. Being a cosmetic dentist allows me to understand the science behind a situation and then use all my skill as an artist to create a solution that is both functional and aesthetically very pleasing. I will not finish a case until I am totally satisfied that I cannot produce a more perfect end-result.

DM: Who inspires you in your career?
TS: I attended a cosmetic bonding and tooth-aligning course presented by Tif Qureshi a few years ago. This was the turning point for me. I learned so much from this one course regarding minimally invasive cosmetic approaches to straightening and bonding, that it completely transformed my practice. It set me down the route to become a practice owner and cosmetic dentist, which is where I have found my true passion.

Tif’s progressive attitude towards cosmetic concepts and his entrepreneurial drive demonstrates that you can achieve whatever you set your mind to.

DM: What is your favorite aspect of the job/profession?
TS: I love the social aspects of being a dental professional. There are so many unique and evoking courses that you can attend where you are able to develop new relationships with like-minded professionals and stimulate new ideas and techniques for improved personal satisfaction and development of clinical practice.

I am very enthusiastic about post-graduate education and have learned a ridiculous amount from my MSc in endodontics and my masters in medical education. These courses taught me so much more about dentistry, people, and self-development than I ever knew possible.

‘Achieve absolute patient satisfaction’

DM: What is the secret to a successful practice?
TS: I think that enthusiasm for your job is without doubt the most important factor to success. If you love what you do then it is palpable to your patients. If they can see how excited you are to develop their treatment plan and create the perfect smile for them, then you will never have any problems generating the results that achieve absolute patient satisfaction, and also stimulate your drive to engage and develop new skills and techniques to make every day at work an unqualified success and pleasure.

DM: What feedback have you received from your patients since winning your award?
TS: Having only owned my practice for one year at the time I won the award of Best Young Dentist South East, it certainly cemented my position within the practice as principal and high-end cosmetic dentist.

I think it reassured all the existing patients that I am excelling within my profession and that they are in safe hands following their long relationships with the previous dentist. I have received an overwhelming number of new patients, many of whom have had multiple consultations elsewhere, but ultimately have chosen my practice. I’m sure that the award has had a huge influence in their decisions.

DM: Have you got any advice you would like to pass onto other young dentists who are thinking of entering The Dentistry Awards next year?
TS: Doing the same as everyone else doesn’t separate you from the pack. Look beyond what all your friends are doing and try to develop yourself based on your own passions. If you love a particular aspect of dentistry then look what’s happening in Europe and America; go on conventions abroad and see how dentistry is developing across the pond.

It is amazing what is happening out there and UK dentistry needs enthusiastic young dentists to pick up the mantle and drive innovation and develop the techniques in the UK, which today are considered innovative, but tomorrow will be the high standard that we are all endeavoring to achieve.

For information on The Dentistry Awards 2016 call 01923 851779 or email [email protected]. Request an entry guide online at www.thedentistryawards.com.

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