From as young as I can remember I’ve always had a fascination with teeth! I used to record in a notebook whenever a tooth fell out or when I got a filling. The dental van used to visit our school each year and I was always happy to see the lovely dental therapists who check our teeth and fixed them for us. Unlike other children, I never feared anything dental, so for me it was only natural that pursuing a career in dentistry would follow. I strive for perfection with my work on a daily basis, but more importantly I aim to make a person’s dental visit as comfortable and relaxing as possible. I love teeth and love to interact with people so for me I have found the perfect job.

A woman came to see me the week before her daughter’s wedding to “fix her smile” before the big event. When speaking she held her hand over her mouth to hide her teeth because she was so embarrassed about the grisly dark brown stains covering them. For the past two years this lady had suffered from this unsightly tooth discolouration and no dental practitioner had been able to discover why. After taking a full medical and dental history I unearthed the cause of her problem. Over two years previously she had been recommended a medicinal chlorhexadine mouthrinse for gum problems. Unfortunately no emphasis was placed at the time on the importance of using the rinse only for a brief period as long term use of chlorhexadine leads to unsightly staining. A thorough polish removed all the stain from her teeth, and tears of joy followed. One month later I received a thank you card and a photo of her now beautiful smile at her daughter’s wedding. She wrote of how happy she was that she no longer had to cover her mouth when she spoke, and most of all she sent thanks for giving her back the smile she had lost for the past two years.

As a single mother in my mid-twenties, I needed to find a career so that I could provide a "comfortable" life for my two children. I knew I wanted to work in the medical field; my first choice was actually nursing. I consider myself a "care-taker" and I wanted to help in the local school community as a school nurse. However then my friend Celia suggested I check out dental hygiene ... so I compared the pros and cons of hygiene vs nursing. I made my choice - best decision ever!! I loved the flexibility, I could still take care of people, and I could still be an active mom! I love meeting new people, taking care of my patients and enjoy the rewards when my patients tell me they "love" having their teeth cleaned!

Unfortunately in the dental field there are a lot of people with dental phobias, usually related to previous bad experiences. A friend of mine who has lived here in Singapore for the last 18 years is one such phobic. Knowing I was in the dental field Patsy would always cover her mouth while talking with me and would try not to smile around me, very self-conscious of her teeth. As a 5 year old in pain, Patsy went to the dentist. He as an 'old school' dentist who was very rough with her ... told her she was acting like a big baby and she needed to quit crying and let him do his job!! After that horrible experience, it had been years since she had been to see a dentist! Eventually and after much persuasion, Patsy let me clean her teeth. I am always gentle, but if at any time she wanted me to stop, I would. While in my chair Patsy's eyes filled with tears. It wasn't that I was hurting her, but just that the fear of not knowing if I would hurt her brought back the bad memories. I continued talking my way through treatment, comforting her as I cleaned and educated her about her gingival health. After what must have been an interminable hour for Patsy, she looked at me with the biggest smile ever and said: "that was the most gentle and comforting dental experience I have ever had!" Patsy is very fortunate as she has nice teeth and "just needed a good cleaning"! I have reclaimed her trust in dentistry! Even though she lives in Singapore, Patsy continued to come to Houston with a BIG smile, to see her "friends" and to get her teeth cleaned!! She is so excited I am here in Singapore to clean her teeth, her family's teeth and her friends teeth!

As a child I had rampant caries. I was fortunate to meet a school dental therapist who was very patient with me during each session of dental treatment and oral hygiene instruction. Even during school recess he would remind me to brush my teeth after eating. Initially I was greatly frightened but it wasn't long before brushing my teeth after food became a routine habit. It made such a difference to me, and to my self confidence, that it became my dream to be a dental therapist/hygienist so I could provide optimal oral hygiene care for everyone.

A very shy 10 year old boy was referred to me by an orthodontist prior to his braces treatment. Sadly he had been traumatised by his last dental treatment three years previously, and now had a phobia. The boy had frequent asthma attacks and breathing was difficult for him in the supine position. The first time I saw him he was so nervous that he started to tremble and cry when sitting on the dental chair. The child also had very poor dental hygiene so the condition of his teeth and gums was really quite bad. Over many visits I worked closely with he and his parents to overcome his dental phobia and to ensure that he would learn good oral hygiene habits. Gradually I was able to build rapport with him so that over time I was able to complete the full mouth debridement and restorations in the dental chair, not the office chair in which we had started! After 5 months the boy was referred back to the Orthodontist. Last year he found me on Facebook, and tagged me to a photo of him without his braces after the completion of the orthodontic treatment. It was great to see.