Emergency Dental Treatment.  The Christmas tree is up and the decorations are around the surgery, everything is looking festive and joyful.  We are closed from lunchtime on the 24th of December through to the morning of the 4th of January.  Dr Jenkins is off island on a well deserved holiday.  If you have any niggles please get booked in now and have them sorted before the Christmas closure.  You certainly don’t want to have toothache over the holiday period…. On island there is always an on call Dentist which is managed by the hospital.  Should you find your self in need of emergency treatment please ring the hospital on 725241 and they will contact the emergency dentist for you.  Remember that calling out the emergency dentist is expensive, so have anything causing you concern fixed now.  Merry Christmas to all from the Bridge Dental Clinic

Don’t get caught out over the Christmas holiday

The rescue of Naseku

The Bridge Dental Clinic continues to support orphan elephants in Kenya

The Kenya Wildlife Service reported to us that a young elephant calf was in need of rescue having been orphaned on the 2nd of November. The Namunyak Conservancy Community Scouts in Northern Kenya had retrieved her from a well and she was now safely in their care, waiting for help to arrive.  Having had experience in rescuing a number of elephants over the years from the Namunyak wells the scouts were aware of the best practice in situations like this; they ensured she had water and shade and avoided feeding her any milk until our team arrived with the correct formula. The wrong milk is very detrimental to baby elephants who cannot tolerate the fat in cow’s milk. Around the same time we were also called by the Lewa Conservancy radio operator who had received a similar report. It was confirmed that the calf had fallen down a manmade well and very tragically her elephant family had been forced to abandon her fearful of the presence of the Samburu herdsman who also share the same watering points in the very dry seasons. Find out more

“Excellent 10/10 – Bridge Dental Clinic. I’ve had to have a little bit of work done on my teeth recently and a new dentist has just taken over, so thought i’d give him a try. Everything is now sorted out, and i just wanted to pass on my personal thanks to Dr Jenkins who has been amazing from start to finish. If you have a fear of dentists / needles etc, then book in with him. His attitude to peoples fear is …brilliant. He’ll put your mind 100% at rest, calm you down and get on with the job keeping you informed of what he’s doing along the way and what you can expect. I was expecting to be in lots of pain, but genuinely didn’t feel a thing. Brilliant. He is also helping me out correct my jaw which has been clicking for years and years. Luckily he noticed my problem and as he is also a skilled Orthodontist, he has been able to help me on the road to sorting this problem out. If you also have a clicking jaw i’d get to see him asap, as this problem will eventually lead to you not being able to open your mouth at all, which isn’t very handy if you need to talk or eat ! I’ve been to a few dentists in the past, whilst they have been good, do not compare to Dr Jenkins. It’s the little things like taking double the amount of time to scale and polish my teeth that clearly points to the fact he takes pride in the job he undertakes and gives his clients better value for money. The other dentists i’ve seen were nowhere near as thorough. His prices are also very reasonable and he sells some great products (toothpastes / toothbrushes) that are not available in the supermarkets etc. I also bought a waterpik which is a brilliant idea for keeping your teeth in great shape. All of his staff are very helpful and friendly and the surgery is currently being expanded to take on another dentist within the practice. Lots of my friends have visited on my recommendation and have had exactly the same brilliant service. He is also passionate about Elephants and wildlife, which is something i really like and respect about him. (See website) Keep up the good work guys ! “

We are delighted to welcome Chloe to the Bridge Dental Clinic as our new nurse.  Chloe recently returned to Guernsey after living in the UK for 13 years and is delighted to be back to the island she was born on.

She has been with us for just over a month and has settled in really well.  After a few weeks of intense training she is happy, has a wonderful chair side manner is calm and relaxed with a lovely smile which is what our patients need.

In the UK she was working as a Nursing Assistant, on an Acute medical ward.  She really enjoyed what she did and finds there is many similarities in dental nursing.  She says “training as a Dental Nurse is a great opportunity and I am really enjoying the new challenge, it also allows me to use many of the skills of my previous role”.

When not working she loves to be out and about walking her dog Ranger, she also enjoys swimming, cycling and cookery.

Welcome Chloe

We recently said farewell to Flick (Felicity) Ozanne, who had worked here as a Dental Nurse at the Bridge Dental Clinic for 14 years.  Flick had decided that it was time for a change and has moved to another practice on the island.  Although we only worked one year with her, we enjoyed her experience and knowledge.  She is an excellent nurse and we wish her well.

Flick at work

Sometimes, words don’t quite say what you mean and there is many a cliché that prompts ‘say it with flowers’  We were delighted when a happy patient delivered these to us on Friday as a way of saying thank you for the way she had been treated here.  It’s always a good feeling to know that you have done your best for your patients and it’s appreciated.

Thank You

Happy Birthday to Bridge Dental Clinic.  I can’t believe it’s one year since Hylton and Annie took over and how the time has flown.  Between, new Xray machines, installing computers, renovating the building and coping with a few technical hiccups, its been a great year.  Hylton and Annie even managed to take a few days leave, which was well earned.  With the birthday cake now eaten, we are looking at what the next year will bring.  An update will follow shortly.

Bridge Dental celebrates a year since Hylton took over.

Why do so many people avoid flossing their teeth?  Most of us can come up with lots of excuses as to why we don’t.  1.  We say food never gets stuck in my teeth.  2.  I don’t know how to floss.  3.  I’m not coordinated enough to floss.  An interesting fact from the British Dental Foundation states that the main things people use to floss are earrings, business cards, keys, matchsticks, screwdrivers or even bank notes.  We don’t just floss just to get rid of food, we do it to get rid of plaque and to keep our mouths healthy.  Flossing regularly helps prevent gum disease and tooth loss.  Water flossers are also an incredibly easy way to clean between braces and bridges and children love them.  We decided to try the Waterpik, cordless flosser at the Bridge Dental Clinic and have been amazed at how well they work.  Many of our patients now use them and really like them.  We therefore just wanted to share with you, that we stock them at Amazon’s price £41.  We also have a very limited stock of the family size flossers.  Our aim is to encourage more people to use them and help prevent gum disease.  If you would like one do get in touch with us on 01481 245357

Waterpik for flossing

We are delighted to welcome Louise Brownlow BDS BSc Hons to the Bridge Dental Clinic. Louise will be at the Clinic on Friday’s and Saturday’s from the 9^th of October. Louise describes herself as a conscientious dentist with a passion for high quality patient care. She thoroughly enjoys general dentistry and has a keen interest in Restorative dentistry, Endodontics and Oral surgery. She practices high standard minimally invasive, preventative dentistry with efficiency and attention to detail.  Louise has excellent communication skills and is quick to build rapport and trust with patients.  Welcoming Louise to the Bridge allows us the opportunity to open on Saturday’s and see patients who cannot visit us during the week.  So many people struggle with fitting appointments in midweek and during working hours, this solves that problem for many.  Our Saturday opening hours will be 8.30am – 4.30pm. Book and appointment with her now on 245 357.  To find out more about Louise read her blog