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You can read parts ones and two of this mini series here and here. Read the case here

The way I feel about the profession of dentistry and my chosen vocational career has changed dramatically through the GDC case.

Most surprisingly though (and most surprisingly to me) it has strengthened my feeling for the profession, it has strengthened my commitment to work long and hard into the later part of my life, it has crystallised my love of being a dentist.

Throughout the process of my GDC case I didn’t think that was possible and in fact there were times when I just wanted to stop and I thought I may well stop when the verdict came. As I have written before Alison and I are in such a privileged position that we would be able to stop now and probably not have to work again. I could walk the dog, ride my bike, look after the kids and not worry about these b*&t$£@*s that come to get you. The funny thing is that the opposite happened.

I have thought about this and wondered why and maybe it comes back to ‘whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’ but I think there is more to it than that. I think having been through the emotional and psychological turmoil of what happened to me for 15 months made me think that they can’t hurt me again like that. As I reflect now I think the only way that I would be able to be struck off would be for dishonesty and although those charges were thrown at me in that case there is no way I would be able to be proven to be dishonest because I have not and will not be dishonest.

Any feelings on my clinical practice could be remediated therefore it wouldn’t lead to an erasure and very unlikely a suspension so it is unlikely that my fitness to practice will mean erasure or suspension to any great degree from the register. Safe in that knowledge, which I do believe is true, means that people can come at me s many times as they like and I will justify my decisions as every single one of them is made in the best faith with the patients best interests at heart at the time I make them. My practice protocols, systems, case notes and behavior is scrutinised countlessly by the number of clinicians and staff I have in the practice; we have an open culture which means that people would have the opportunity to correct things I was doing wrong or at least report them. It’s not that I feel untouchable or that I think it won’t be stressful and horrible again at times, it’s just not the most horrible thing anymore. As a result of this I feel I have great freedom to move forwards, to use my voice as a tool to try and benefit the profession and therefore the patients that are treated. That is the legacy I take from this. That is the energy it has given me. That is the purpose I feel.

Funny how things turn out not quite how you expected at the time.