Smile dentist surgery opens at Dockside Outlet Centre, Chatham
14:46, 06 January 2022
updated: 14:48, 06 January 2022
Now here's some news to make you smile.
The Dockside Outlet Centre in Chatham now boasts a new dentists' practice.
Smil has opened at an upstairs unit next to The Range, offering family and cosmetic dentistry, implants and facial aesthetics.
It also has two "smile advisors" who help patients visualise their current situation and discuss treatment options in a room with a cup of tea or coffee away from all the surgery paraphernalia.
At the helm is specialist dentist Neil Underhill who, with 27 years of practising in Kent, moved from his previous surgery in Medway in November.
So why move into a retail park?
The father-of-two explained: "There was a unit available, large free parking and the landlord was keen to diversify the offer in the centre."
The 51-year-old said: "The clientele is very broad-based from shoppers to local residents and people ho find us through social media.
"We have been very humbled by the number of patients we have seen in the first month who have already referred family and friends.
"A lot have come from St Mary's Island as a result of people recommending us on the residents' Facebook page and we have managed to get 24 five-star Google reviews already."
Neil, who lives near Canterbury, studied at Glasgow University and has attended courses run by some of the world's top dentists over the years.
He said: "I recently finished a diploma in clear aligner therapy and I have just completed Invisalign treatment (an alternative to wire braces) on my own teeth, so know exactly how it feels.
"Our aim is to provide quality, pain-free dental care at affordable prices using the latest technology such as intra-oral scanners which avoid the need for messy impressions.
"We can provide simulations to show people what they would look like with straight teeth and can show x-rays and photos on a large TV in front of patients so they can be fully involved in the diagnosis and treatment planning."
There are currently three dentists, a doctor who does facial aesthetics and visiting specialists who do root canal and implants at the practice.
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