Dental Leaders Podcast

You could say Shirin Ali has waited her entire career to answer Payman’s infamous question on worst clinical mistakes. The London-based associate says her black box moment happened while treating her very first patient.   But the experience did little to dampen a stellar career that’s seen Shirin spend almost two decades at one of London’s most prestigious practices.     She chats with Payman about her start during the early years of cosmetic dentistry working alongside Chris Orr, discusses working with the legendary Eddie Scher, and reveals why practice ownership    In This Episode 01.08 - Social media and anonymity 03.55 - Backstory and discovering dentistry 08.56 - First jobs 24.21 - Art Vs science 28.23 - Walpole Street 30.47 - Practice ownership 34.07 - Eddie Scher and Banning Dental  45.42 - Curiosity and training and development 50.33 - Downtime 53.05 - Blackbox thinking and best days 01.04.00 - Alternative careers 01.09.18 - Fantasy dinner party 01.14.29 - Last days and legacy About Shirin Ali Shrin Ali s an associate with a special interest in cosmetic dentistry. She spent 17 years practising at Chelea’s exclusive Walpole Street Dental Practice and now works part-time at London-based Banning Dental & Skin Clinique.   

Ahmad Nounou’s Black Swan Dental Spa and Bristol Dental Suite practices have taken the South west by storm. So what’s his secret?   In this episode, Ahmad chats with Payman about his uncompromising approach to customer service that has earned his practices a reputation for providing the best patient experience in the industry.    He tells how he turned Black Swan from an ailing clinic into the success it is today, discusses the importance of maintaining and passing on a strong work ethic, and chats about dividing time between practice management and his clinical and mentoring roles.   Enjoy!  In This Episode 01.42 - When the going gets tough 06.52 - Growing up 11.02 - Academia to ownership 26.27 - Growing Black Swan 38.30 - Work ethic 47.54 - The feel 53.06 - Setting goals 01.00.28 - Control and delegation 01.09.08 - Customer service and culture 01.18.36 - Position, pricing and marketing 01.25.05 - Practice Vs business 01.30.31 - The Centre for Dentistry 01.42.09 - Events, conferences and mentoring 01.55.50 - Black box thinking 02.13.15 - Weaknesses 02.18.16 - Fantasy dinner party 02.23.50 - Last days and legacy About Ahmad Nounu Ahmad Nounu is the principal of Somerset-based Black Swan Dental Spa and Bristol. His most recent venture is the Private Dental Mentor scheme for dentists in private practice.   Enjoy!  

Viewers of ITV’s This Morning and E4’s Body Fixers will be familiar with this week’s Mind Mover, Dr Tijion Esho. In this episode, Tijion chats with Payman and Rhona about his journey being one of the aesthetic industry’s most familiar faces. He shares the turbulent life of his Esho skincare brand and talks about dealing with grief following the passing of a close mentor and big brother figure, delving deep into the many clinical and business highs and lows experienced over his meteoric rise. Enjoy!   In This Episode 03.36 - Backstory and entering medicine 15.46 - Race 19.05 - Choosing aesthetics 26.25 - NHS and giving back 30.44 - Achievements, fulfilment and validation 41.26 - Business highs and lows 53.06 - Grief and mental health 01.02.12 - Social media, anonymity and tolerance 01.13.30 - Litigation and regulation 01.21.05 - Clinical errors 01.28.45 - Ultimate happiness About Tijion Esho Dr Tijion Esho graduated from Leicester Medical School in 2005. He is a member of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons and General Practitioners. Tijion is the doctor on E4’s Body Fixers and regularly appears on ITV’s This Morning. He regularly contributes to Forbes and Vogue and has a regular column in OK Magazine. Tijion’s experience with non-surgical aesthetic procedures has earned him the nickname Dr Lips. Tijion is the co-host of Steths, Drugs, and Rock n’ Roll alongside fellow This Morning doctors Ranj Singh, Dr Zoe Williams, and Dr Sara Kayat. In 2016, Tijion initiated the ESHO Initiative, offering reconstructive treatments to those who have experienced issues due to cosmetic procedures, trauma, or congenital deformities.  Additionally, he played a role in founding the Black Aesthetics Advisory Board (BAAB), an organisation tasked with examining the encounters of black and ethnic medical professionals and patients in the aesthetic field.   

Implantology educator, Pav Khaira, discusses his upbringing in a family shop, his journey to success in the dental industry, and his experience with bankruptcy. He also reflects on the importance of education, relationships, and the relief that comes from overcoming challenges. The podcast concludes with a fun hypothetical question about a fantasy dinner party.

Nino Sporomadze grew up in the former Soviet Union before making her way to the UK, where she has enjoyed a decade-long career as a hospitality entrepreneur.    And she is about to undertake a journey of a very different kind as she pivots from being a restauranteur to a trained psychotherapist.   In this week’s episode, Nino discusses how her experience as an immigrant to the UK informs her mindset.    She also shares her thoughts on early and inter-generational traumas and sparks a lively discussion about gender roles, societal expectations and culture.   Enjoy!     In This Episode 02.48 - The immigrant experience 11.04 - Boarding school 14.40 - Trauma, development and healing 25.41 - Gender roles and culture 51.45 - Waka, entrepreneurialism and adversity 01.02.53 - Closing quiz About Nino Sporomadze  Nino Sporomadze is an entrepreneur with over a decade of experience in the hospitality space and co-founder of the Waka Asian fusion restaurant brand. She is currently training in psychotherapy.  

Payman says Bournemouth’s Dental on the Banks is one of the most beautiful practices he’s ever seen.    So what’s the story?   Brothers and clinic founders Damon and Ramtin Taheri tell all in this week’s episode. Damon and Ramtin also discuss life in Sweden, where both gained speciality status in orthodontics, and dispel several widespread clear aligner mistakes and misconceptions.   Enjoy!   In This Episode 02.25 - Backstory 05.53 - Sweden Vs UK 13.23 - Specialising 21.10 - Dental on the Banks 33.41 - Recruitment, training and culture 42.26 - Brand positioning 44.28 - Clear aligner misconceptions 48,21 - The Clear Aligner Programme 55.30 - Invisalign mistakes 01.04.31 - Agnosticism 01.10.19 - Teaching Vs practice 01.13.34 - Blackbox thinking 01.23.11 - Fantasy dinner party and podcast guests 01.27.54 - Last days and legacy About Damon and Ramtin Taheri Brothers Damon and Ramtin Taheri specialised in orthodontics at Gothenburg University in Sweden.   They jointly founded Bournemouth-based Dental on the Banks and run comprehensive Invisalign training together through their Complete Aligner Programme brand.  

Mind Movers - Waz Ashayer Inviting patients to appear as podcast guests is officially now a thing…   But there’s so much more to Waz Ashayer.    The fitness influencer, entrepreneur, and soon-to-be TV personality talks candidly about his rise to success from a low point of substance misuse, addiction and depression.    Enjoy!  In This Episode 03.01 - Defining addiction 11.47 - The turning point 24.58 - Positive Vs negative addictions 28.29 - Modelling 32.46 - Advice to Waz’s younger self 38.25 - Go Hard or Go hard 43.13 - Influences and inspirations About Waz Ashayer Waz Ashayer is the founder of the pop-up fitness brand Raise LDN, described as the ‘fitness industry’s legal high’.    He is the group fitness manager for Equinox and a trainer for the leading on-demand fitness app FIIT.   Waz is also a brand ambassador for many leading fitness brands.   

Guest speaker Amin Aminian, chief dental officer of the Falkland Islands and founder of one of the Northwest's busiest referral clinics, discusses his journey in dentistry, from becoming a specialist and a principal to the challenges of rehabilitation and pricing. He emphasizes the importance of confidence, humility, and excellence, as well as the patient journey and the benefits of digital dentistry. Aminian also shares insights on work ethic, training abroad, and his fantasy podcast and dinner party guests.

When Maria Ensabella unleashed her London Cryo concept on the UK capital in 2006, she knew little about how to market the business successfully.   Maria chats with Rhona and Payman about finding her feet as an entrepreneur and gives a rapid-fire rundown of the benefits of the innovative cryo, hyperbaric, and IV therapies.   Maria also reveals the most significant mistakes and struggles she has overcome since launching London Cryo and discusses how businesses can retain their sense of purpose as they scale.   Enjoy!    In This Episode 02.36 - Entering business and marketing 14.25 - Cryo and cold therapy 22.20 - Oxygen and hyperbaric therapy 25.51 - IV therapies 31.20 - Business, purpose and well-being 34.10 - Capital, exits and preserving USPs 42.22 - Mistakes 43.39 - Management 49.45 - Struggles 54.04 - Back in time About Maria Ensabella Maria Ensabella is one of the UK's leading wellness practitioners. Since 2016, she has pioneered a range of treatments and therapies through her London Cryo brand. Ella is also a fitness enthusiast preparing for her seventh marathon.  

Strap in for a deep conversation as Prav sits down to chat with GDPR consultant to the dental industry, Adrian Dray.    Adrian talks candidly about his difficult formative experiences as the victim of bullying at an early age, a crisis spurred by the passing of his father, and the confronting of his mortality following a brutal confrontation with COVID.   There’s also plenty of practical insight as Adrian discusses the impact of much-misunderstood GDPR on dentistry and the potentially paradigm-shifting effects of emerging AI technologies.    To learn more about AI's potential impact, listen to the Implement AI podcast with Piers Linney and Aaalok Shukla. Grab Adrian’s Exclusive AI & GDPR Freebies! Adrian is giving away two essential guides on AI and GDPR exclusively to Dental Leaders listeners.   Get Adrian’s Chat GPT Guide for Dentists Get ChatGPT - A Dental Business Game Changer with 100% by following this link or entering code DL100 at checkout. (Offer limited to the first 100 listeners only.)    Exclusive Free Download for Dental Practices You can grab Adrian’s invaluable Privacy Notice Template for dental practices (usually £57) here with this exclusive link or by entering code DL100 at checkout.    Exclusive Free Download for Dental Associates Associates can download Adrian’s website Privacy Notice Template (usually £52) by following this link or entering code DL100 at checkout. In This Episode 01.52 - Backstory 05.03 - Bullying 22.07 - The dental community 34.48 - Breakdown and recovery 47.54 - GDPR—issues and risks 01.05.47 - Real-world examples 01.24.17 - AI for dentists 01.36.53 - Health, COVID and fasting 02.07.24 - Compassion and internal family systems 02.13.59 - Last days and legacy About Adrian Dray Adrian Dray is a leading advisor to UK dentists on GDPR privacy and data regulation and a former Data Protection Officer for over 600 dental practices.   He is passionate about helping dentists take advantage of emerging AI technologies.