Team

Introducing our Trustees
and Coordinators

Trustees

The Trust is responsible for the management of DHST and raising funds from Local Dental Committees and across the profession to support and maintain services provided by the Coordinators of DHST.

Dr John Cameron

Chairman

John has been a Trustee for over a decade and has considerable experience assisting health professionals particularly when in difficulty with the regulators. He spent many years running his own dental practices both in Scotland and England, as well as working as Senior Dental adviser for NHS National Services Scotland. He is Senior Clinical Teaching Fellow, running the law and ethics programme at the University of Aberdeen Dental School.

Dr Michael Stern

Treasurer & Secretary

After doing National Service in the RAF he studied dentistry at the Royal Dental Hospital. On qualification he worked as an associate at a practice in Knightsbridge before opening his own practice in Haringey where he was a NHS GDP for over 40 years. He served on the Haringey and Enfield LDC for over 20 years as Secretary and then Chairman, being concerned about the stress for dentists in single handed practices he became active with the DHST and is now Honorary Treasurer with responsibility for fundraising.

Dr Paul Langmaid

Trustee

Paul graduated BDS (Wales) in 1975. Following General Dental Practice in Cornwall he was appointed Chief Dental Officer on Anguilla, British West Indies. In 1993 he joined the Welsh Office and in 1997 was appointed Chief Dental Officer (Wales), retiring in December 2010. He is Chairman of WEHE Advisory Group, appointed CBE by HM the Queen 2010, to BDA Roll of Distinction 2011 and made Honorary Fellow of Cardiff University July 2013.

Dr Janine Brooks

Trustee

Janine graduated from Birmingham Dental School in the early 80′s and is currently an Educational Inspector for the GDC; a coach for the Professional Support Unit HEE, Thames Valley; Lead clinical tutor for the Law and Ethics module, University of Bristol BUOLD programme; trustee of DHST and a Fellow for the SBDN. She runs three coaching and training businesses and she specialises in coaching dentists experiencing difficulties.

Dr Simon Lidster

Trustee

Simon qualified from Sheffield University in 1980 and worked in NHS general practice for his whole career. He jointly owned two FD training practices in Sheffield and was heavily involved in teaching endodontics at undergraduate and postgraduate level. He retired in April 2017 to pursue his passions for fly fishing.

Dr Sonia Kumar

Trustee

Sonia Kumar graduated from the University of Aberdeen and St Georges, University of London with degrees in Bachelor of Dental Surgery and BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science. She is a GDP who has worked in both NHS & Private Practices in Glasgow and Harley Street, London. She became a Trustee for the DHST in 2016 and plays a key role in raising awareness for support available for Dentists with mental health, addiction issues on Social Media.

Graham Smith

Trustee

Graham Smith graduated in dentistry from UMDS (Guy's Hospital) in 1991 and in medicine from University of Bristol in 1996. Having completed higher surgical training in OMFS on the South coast Training Programme, he undertook a year's head and neck fellowship in Sydney Australia in 2003. He is a consultant in OMFS and Head & Neck Oncology at St George's Hospital, London and Kingston Hospital. He is actively involved with the training of dentists and doctors.

Coordinators

Mr Rory O’Connor

National Coordinator

MSc Addictions, BA Psychology, Registered Psychiatric Nurse, Diploma in Counselling. Rory has worked for 39 years in mental health and addictions and has extensive experience in managing programmes for health professionals and veterinary surgeons with mental illness and addictive disorders. Currently he is the National Coordinator of the Dentists’ Health Support Programme and the Veterinary Surgeons’ Health Support Programme. Rory is a first responder for the Doctors’ helpline, Clinical Advisor for the Practitioner Health Programme (London) and has his own independent practice. He was formerly a Clinical Director within the NHS and in Charitable and Independent settings. He continues to be heavily involved in proposals for the UK development of specialised clinical services for clinical staff.

Richard Jones

Clinical Lead & National Coordinator

MSc Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy, BSc Mental Health Nursing, NMC independent prescriber, Therapist. RMN, MAREBT

Richard joins DHST from his 12 year role as the Clinical Director at Practitioner Health: working exclusively with doctors and dentists who are struggling with their mental health or have issues related to addiction.

Richard has expertise in helping practitioners recover from all kinds of metal health issues and addictions. He is also experienced managing the interface between working as a regulated professional and experiencing mental health and addiction issues.

He has a passion for developing services specifically for health professionals and helping people remain in work or get back to work after a period of absence.

Prior to his NHS role Richard had a role as a lecturer practitioner at King’s College London and worked at the South London and Maudsley Trust in both clinical and research roles.

He is based in London and the south of Scotland.

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