Night Shift

It has been an excellent month of progress at Augusta Dental Centre; however, I am not suggesting we need to work all night! Night Shift is a new orthodontic system that means you can straighten your teeth by simply wearing something at night. We are just starting our first cases so it is all jolly exciting and I will let you know how we get on.

It is one of the many treatment options now available to us and there are so many things we can do to improve someone's smile and make them feel better about themslves. It is a great time to be a dentist; we have a nice set-up in Leamington, a great team and I really enjoy going into work each day.

We have now been open for a couple of months, although the holidays and the weather have had an impact. I am keen to say “now the frost and snow has gone”, but every time I get close it starts to sleet once again. Anyway it has been quite a brisk start; Vickie and Clare have been getting to grips with our clinical protocols, whilst Elaine and Kathy are sorting out all the administration. It is really refreshing to work with such a keen and enthusiastic team.

Even though we have only been open for a short while, we are already expanding and next month Dr Sven Steinborn will be joining us. Sven and I have been chatting away for a few months and he really is a lovely chap who truly believes and supports the practice ethos and vision. He is registered with the General Dental Council as a ‘Specialist in Oral Surgery’, he has also completed his MSc in Periodontology (gum disease), and I am delighted that he will be bringing his considerable skill and experience to Augusta Dental Centre.

In line with our ‘New Year, New Smile’ plans we have reduced the fees for the Wy10 surgery whitening from £450 to £250; similarly home whitening is reduced from £199 to £99, although this is free for everyone on the Privilege Plan scheme. The response to our competition in the Courier has been fantastic and the lucky winner will be featured in the paper early next month. Those who have been working hard in the gym at LA Fitness in Warwick will have seen our new advert, which will soon be added to the website.

It has been a brilliant start and on those rare occasions when the sun has been shining, the building and everyone in it really lights up. There is still plenty of work to be done, but it is wonderful to be able to get up and smile because “I am going the dentist’s today!”

We Are Open

It has finally happened and we are actually open, yes the doors are open and we are now treating patients. Strangely enough, after such a long lead time, the first day was a relatively quiet affair; I think we were all just glad to finally start caring for real people. Of course, this is just phase one and the upper floors still have the feel of an unfinished building site, but it is a significant start.

As expected the first day did present a few minor technical issues; this is hardly surprising as a modern dental surgery is a pretty high tech environment and that is without all the supporting digital IT equipment, both telephones and computers. This also means that there is quite a lot of information and technology for the new team to grasp, but Kathy and Elaine have made a great start.

It was a long and difficult journey, not helped by the ongoing financial situation, but with tremendous help from my friends and family the dream has become a reality.We have a great team in place and it all feels just right and I can now focus on delivering the highest standards of dental care. Excellent.

At long last we have a planned opening date - 15 December 2009 and the appointment book is now open. The telephone number (0844 375 6505) has been activated and the email address (info@augustadental.co.uk) is now live. We are going through the training for the new (well everything is new) dental management software and the first appointment is in the book.

It has taken a while, far, far longer than I could have ever imagined, but the practice is starting to look really good, but goodness me it has been a frustrating few weeks. This is purely because I can physically see the realisation of my dreams and vision, so I am desperately keen to start. One of the sheer joys of working with people like Adam Brian, the builder, and Jenny and Lou from New Spaces is their attention to detail and perfectionists take a bit more time.

There is so much going on at the moment that it is almost impossible to stop my head spinning, but we are nearly there. I have really enjoyed going through all the treatment options we will be offering, from mini implant to Invisalign, all exciting stuff. Only days to go – can’t wait!

The Builders Are In!

It really is happening, the builders have started work and we are making real progress. It is an unusual blend of excitement and fear at the moment. I find it difficult to envisage the final result as everywhere has been knocked about and everything is covered in a fine film of dust.

I still plan to be open on 09 November but there seems to be an awful lot of work to do before then. I have been quite surprised by the number of people involved in the whole process. Even before the building works started I had to deal with architects, surgery designers, equipment suppliers, building control officers, as well as delving into an absolute myriad of regulations. Having completed that lot, it doesn't get any less complex when we get down to actually putting all the plans into effect. It requires an amazing amount of coordination, but it has been made so much easier by having some excellent chaps to work with, so thanks to Adam, John, Steve and Rob.

Brilliant, only 32 days to go and counting!

Opening Day - 9 Nov 09

At last the most important date for the past year is in the diary - we will be open on Monday 9th November. Absolutely fantastic news and a huge sense of relief, but, quite obviously we are not there yet and there is a tremendous amount of hardwork to be done yet, but we have a start date.

Hopefully I have done enough preparatory work to ensure there are no more surprises; I have certainly had to wait long enough. The light at the end of the tunnel is switched on and burning brightly.

Holiday Time

I am delighted to report that we have made a physical start on the refurbishment and have had a busy couple of weekends scraping wallpaper. I say "we" because Elaine, Alice, Guy, Mum and Dad have been absolutely brilliant and particular thanks to Mum and Dad who have taken to the project with real enthusiasm.

I am looking forward to a family week in Cornwall, which culminates in the Lusty Glaze Beach Rugby Tournament for Alice and her Comets team. Guy and I will also be running around, but it is all about some quality time together.

Meanwhile the builders are all primed and will start work next week and we are still on course for opening in October.