Behind prison walls

This is a great opportunity to speak to someone working in such an interesting environment for dental nurses. How did your career in dentistry first begin?

I was still at school working on my A-levels, but it became more and more obvious that the subjects simply were not for me. I met up with a friend who had recently started dental nursing herself and had great things to say about it, so I thought why not? Since then I have never looked back.

How did the opportunity first come about for you to work within the prison system?

One of the nurses working alongside me at Cavity Dental was planning to move on to another role, and she asked me if I would step in and have a try at the role, and I thought ‘Why not? Let’s give it a shot!’. I knew if I didn’t like it there was no pressure for me to continue. Strangely the only thing I had heard about dental nursing in prisons was that at times it could feel a little slow (and even to bring a book!), but I can honestly say I’ve never had a chance to read a page!