Contact Point Podcast

Told she could never practise dentistry again, she found another way — and now leads the International Academy of Biological Dentistry and Medicine. Dr Katie To is a wellness dentist, educator and president of the IABDM, running a biological dental practice in Texas built around saliva testing, genetic insight and close collaboration with medical doctors. In this conversation with Simon, she share...

From 1,500 employees and 120 pediatric dentists to building one of the most talked about AI platforms in global dentistry. Dr Alex Sanders is the founder and CEO of Diagnocat, a dental AI company that processes millions of radiographs and CBCTs across Europe, the US, and beyond. He's also the owner of one of Russia's largest dental groups, a practice he bootstrapped from a $120,000 loan into a mul...

You don't need all the tools, all the gadgets to be good. You need the right tools for the treatment you are offering. Dr Alessandro De Viggo has been using CEREC for over 30 years. He was the second patient ever to receive CEREC inlays in 1986, opened his practice in 1990 with two CEREC 1 machines, and has placed more than 30,000 chairside restorations. In this conversation with Simon, he unpacks...

The whole point of our career should be to stop a patient from having a full mouth rehab. It's actually a reflection of a failure. Dr Tif Qureshi has been in the same practice for 33 years. He's watched teeth move, veneers fail, and patients come back with the same crowding he straightened two decades ago. In this conversation with Simon, he unpacks what that teaches you about consent, retention,...

"I can easily say I made mistakes more than the total number of veneers that a young generation dentist placed in the mouth." Dr Galip Gürel wrote the book on porcelain veneers, and he has been refining how they're done for more than 40 years. In this episode he tells Simon how modern veneer dentistry came together. He learned "the kitchen" by sitting in on dental technician classes, borrowed wax...

From substance abuse to the top of American dentistry. From contemplating suicide to testifying before Congress. Dr Brett Kessler's story is not what you'd expect from the leader of 100,000 dentists. Contact Point – Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Dr Brett Kessler is the immediate past president of America's largest dental organization, a general dentist, endurance athlete, and...

No one wanted to do perio when she qualified. Now she runs the largest specialist perio clinic in the UK. Contact Point – Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Dr Reena Wadia is a specialist periodontist, founder of RW Perio, and creator of Perio School – a global education platform training dentists and hygienists in periodontal care. In this conversation she and Simon go deep on bui...

It's never been so cheap to lie. And dentistry is about to feel it. Contact Point – Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Adrian Dray is one of the most distinctive voices in UK dentistry. GDPR expert, behavioral science evangelist, and the man who brought Rory Sutherland into the profession. In this conversation he and Simon go deep on trust, authenticity, and why the biggest trap fa...

"We were told at the time, if you do veneers, you're unethical." Sam Jethwa spent a decade proving them wrong. Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Sam Jethwa is one of the most recognisable names in UK cosmetic dentistry and the current president of the BACD. He and Simon qualified together, and in this conversation they go back over a career built almost entirely ag...

Most people think discipline means never stopping. Jamie Clements thinks that's backwards. Dr Simon Chard sits down with breath work practitioner and founder of The Breath Space, Jamie Clements, for a conversation about why dentistry burns people out - and why the fix is less exotic, and harder, than most of us want it to be. In this conversation: - Why "you're breathing wrong" is the wrong messag...

A dentist's value is about to fall. The man buying practices at scale just said it out loud. Contact Point - the podcast on dentistry's next decade, hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Dev Patel built Dental Beauty Partners out of nothing and straight through the middle of a market the corporates thought they owned. In this conversation he explains why practice count is vanity, why almost every group stalls...

They told him to walk away or lose his house. He went to the High Court anyway - and beat the Department of Health. Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Eddie Crouch is Chair of the British Dental Association. For twenty years he has been the face the profession sends into the room with government — and in this conversation he lays out exactly what happens in those ro...

Four new patients a day. Sixteen years in one practice. And almost nobody asks the price. Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Sameer Patel has spent his career building the opposite of a conversion machine. Four years educating patients before he quoted a number. A practice grown 300% from a single surgery. Two sabbaticals — one solo, one with his family around the w...

Is the dental profession over-treating patients? Martin Wanendeya has spent 22 years building Ten Dental into one of the UK's most respected implant practices — and he has a pointed view on where full-arch dentistry is heading. Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. In this conversation: Martin joins Simon to trace the journey from a squat practice in 2004 to a multi-si...

Could your saliva reveal more about your health than your blood? Victoria Sampson has spent years proving the mouth is a diagnostic goldmine - and dentistry is only just catching up. Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade. Hosted by Dr Simon Chard. In this conversation: Victoria Sampson joins Simon to unpack the oral microbiome, saliva testing, and the growing evidence linking gum health to over...

He nearly lost his house keeping the business alive. 25 years later, Enlighten is a household name in dentistry. Payman Langroudi joins Dr Simon Chard on Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade. In this conversation: Payman Langroudi - founder of Enlighten - sits down with Simon for a wide-ranging conversation on building a dental brand over 25 years, the cash crises that nearly ended it, and what...

Christian Coachman has spent his career convincing dentists to embrace technology. Now he's telling them the opposite. What if the most profitable move in dentistry - scaling - is the one thing quietly killing your craft? Christian Coachman joins Dr Simon Chard for a wide-ranging conversation on artistry, diagnosis, and what actually matters over a lifetime of care. In this conversation: – Why qua...

She left Goldman Sachs to build an AI that answers your clinic's phone. A quarter of patient calls go unanswered - India thinks that's a solved problem. Contact Point - Dentistry's Next Decade, hosted by Dr Simon Chard. Chapters 00:00:00 Introduction: From Goldman Sachs to Dental AI 00:06:07 The Entrepreneurial Spark: Fashion Shows to Fintech 00:09:07 The Birth of Linda: A Family Practice Problem...

Most dentists think public speaking means standing in front of 5,000 people. It doesn't. It means communicating - and it might be the most underrated skill in the profession. This is a highlight from our full conversation with Dr Mehy Lo Presti on Contact Point. In this clip: - Why public speaking is really just communication - and why it changes how you treat one patient - The maths of reach: spe...

Dr James Goolnik on the mouth-body connection, why most dentistry treats the symptom instead of the cause, and what to actually look for on a toothpaste label. New episodes every week. The long-form conversation defining dentistry's next decade - hosted by Dr Simon Chard. This episode: Dr James Goolnik - founder of Optimal Dental Health, author of Kick Sugar, and one of the most thought-provoking...

The orthodontist who stopped chasing straight teeth and started asking why they're crooked in the first place. In this week's Cross Section, Dr Steffen Decker gives every dentist the three things they can actually do on from tomorrow morning to spot the kids who are slipping through the net. New moments every Thursday. This is a highlight from our full conversation with Dr Steffen Decker on Contac...

The orthodontist who stopped chasing straight teeth and started asking why they were crooked in the first place. Steffen Decker on airway, sleep-disordered breathing, and the three things every parent and dentist should be checking in children. New episodes every Monday. The long-form conversation defining dentistry's next decade - hosted by Dr Simon Chard. This episode: Dr Steffen Decker - orthod...

The restorative consultant who studies psychology, mortality and Stoic philosophy as seriously as he studies teeth - on why we're all wearing a mask, why comfort is quietly making us worse, and how to tell which of your desires are even yours. New episodes every Monday. The long-form conversation defining dentistry's next decade - hosted by Dr Simon Chard. This episode: Dr Richard Porter - restora...

The man who bought 120 dental practices on what actually makes one worth buying - and why being the "key person" in your own practice is quietly destroying its value. New episodes every Monday. The long-form conversation defining dentistry's next decade - hosted by Dr Simon Chard. This episode: Andy Sloan - former MD of Agilio, ex-Henry Schein and Portman, and the man who led the team that acquire...

Lincoln Harris built a dental practice next to a beach in Queensland - then gave it up to build an AI-powered education company from scratch. He joins Simon Chard to talk courage, clinical stress, dental training, and where the profession goes next. ▶ Subscribe for a new episode every Monday. Lincoln Harris is one of dentistry's most candid voices on skill, fear and the realities of a clinical car...