We have been shortlisted!!

We are proud inform you that we have been shortlisted for the following awards:

Best Team – Private Dentistry Awards 2021
Best Receptionist – Private Dentistry 2021
Best Receptionist – Dentistry Awards 2021

It’s a sign!

Our brass signs have had an update. This gives you a more up to date view on the talented Clinician’s who take care of your smile and their special interests too.

A new Stricklandgate addition has arrived…

On 12th October we said goodbye to Dr Christine Howell as she began her maternity leave with baby number three.

We are delighted to announce that Dr Christine Howell welcomed a beautiful baby girl to the world on 25th October (her own birthday no less!). We cannot wait to meet baby Ambe!

Huge congratulations from all the team at Stricklandgate.

It’s been just over a year since this blog has been updated, and what a year it has been.

There have been lots of changes that we have all had to adapt to with Coronavirus and we wanted to thank each and every one of you for your patience and kindness at this complicated time. We really appreciate the support we have had from you all. We are still working to strict guidelines to keep you all as safe as possible, we understand that has caused some longer waiting times than normal, but we are working hard behind the scenes to get as many clinics running as we can to reduce waiting times.

We have welcomed some new staff to the team and we have also said goodbye to others.

We have welcome Alicia and Louise as Trainee Dental Nurses, they’re working incredibly hard and we’re really proud of them.

We have welcome Dr Ben Harrison and Dr Blue Coupe who both have a special interest in Endodontics.

We have said goodbye to Fiona, one of our longest standing Dental Nurses as she retired and we have also recently said goodbye to one of our fantastic Hygienists, Teresa Harkes, who has gone on to pursue a career in Counselling and training up Counsellors. We wish her the best of luck in this new venture and her trainees are lucky to have her!

We also gradually been revamping the practice to refresh it, we hope you like what we’ve done so far!

Local photographer, Trudie Smith set herself the task of photographing as many Penrith based businesses as possible throughout the first few weeks of normality after the UK wide lockdown began to ease.

The aim of Trudie’s photo’s is to capture the true happiness, hard work and community spirit shown by all local businesses throughout the last few months.

Trudie’s photographs have caught the attention of many including a local gallery owner who has offered to host Trudie’s images for a limited time for the public to admire. We are one of the lucky businesses who are featured in the gallery and we cannot wait to go and view the finished product!

Check out Trudie’s work by visiting her Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/TrudieSmithPhotography/

One of our longest serving members of staff, Janice, has retired after over 35 years at Stricklandgate Dental Practice.

Janice began working in the practice during the 1980’s and has since seen hundreds of patients and worked with multiple dentists. Despite the change in dentistry, Janice’s upbeat, kind and sympathetic nature remained the same throughout the years and both patients and staff will miss her dearly.

Thank you for all of your hard work over the years Janice, we cannot wait to catch up and hear how retirement is treating you!

Team Strictly Dental

We have been open for three weeks now and have thoroughly enjoyed being back! We are glad to be able to look after all our patients at the practice again.

The new protocols are designed to keep everyone as safe as possible. We initially began by prioritising those needing urgent and emergency care. If you have had any dental issues or concerns during lockdown, please get in touch and we will get you booked in immediately.

We are now ready to move onto the next phase.

We are pleased to be able to offer general dental treatments including examinations and hygienist appointments.

If you have received a recall during lockdown or are now due, please get in touch and reception will be happy to book you in.

Current guidelines limit the use of the ultrasonic scaler so hygienist appointments will be mainly hand scale. Filling appointments take much longer due to the additional PPE and decontamination of the surgery after each treatment. This means the number of patients we are able to see per day is much less than before the Covid19 pandemic. 

The new appointment booking system will allow you to complete some forms at home which we can send via email or text message. We also require you to fill in a ‘Consent to treatment form’. Our Reception team will call you on the day of your appointment to ask you some screening questions to ensure you are well enough to attend. This will all be explained to you by our friendly team when booking your appointment, who can also answer any other questions you may have.

From this week all of our dentists will be available including those with special interests:

Dr Satya Patel (Cosmetic dentistry and dental implants)

Dr Chrissie Howell (Restorative dentistry)

Dr John Harkes (General dentistry)

Dr Ben Harrison (Root canal treatment)

We expect our diaries will get increasingly busy, so please do not delay booking an appointment. We are happy to book appointments in advance so please get in touch.

We look forward to seeing you at the practice soon.

Best wishes

Satya Patel

Principal Dentist

As you may have heard on the news, back at the very end of May, dental practices in England were given the go-ahead to reopen on Monday 8th June as long as strict health and safety guidelines were adhered to.

We reopened the practice on Monday 8th June as planned and began to see patients with emergency and urgent care needs only. As the last couple of weeks have progressed we have slowly been able to extend the number of treatments able to be offered and have now began to take bookings for routine examinations and hygiene appointments.

If you are looking to book a routine appointment, give our reception team a call on 01768 865744 and they will assist you.

We look forward to seeing you all soon!

Strictly Dental

We are ready to safely see you again from Monday 8th June! Some things may have changed but remember, we are still the same friendly faces under our new PPE!

Infection control and patient care has always been our priority. We will be using all the necessary PPE and updated protocols in order to keep all our patients and staff safe.

Summary of our new patient journey:

1) If you are displaying COVID-19 symptoms we will not be able to provide treatment.

2) Please complete forms at home where possible – medical history/COVID-19 consent form.

3) Wait in your car if you arrive early & try to arrive as close to your appointment time as possible.

4) Attend the practice by yourself and with as few personal items as possible.

5) You will be called to enter the practice and asked observe social distancing when others are present.

6) The practice front door will be open, please use the hand sanitising station available before entering practice.

7) We will carry out a temperature check after you have sanitised your hands.

8)You will be chaperoned to the surgery.

9) Expect to see your dentist and nurse in extra PPE – however, we are still the same friendly people underneath!

10) Before your treatment you will be given a specific mouthwash to decontaminate the oral cavity.

11) Your treatment may take longer than before due to the extra precautions and procedures in place to keep everyone safe.

12) On leaving the surgery, a buddy nurse will chaperone you to reception.

13) Please sanitise your hands before you exit.

14) The preferred method of payment will be card or online bank transfer. Details will be provided by reception.

We look forward to seeing you all soon!

Strictly Dental Team

I would like to update you about the way our dental practice is working in the middle of the
current covid-19 virus outbreak that is affecting the whole country.

We have staff and dentists available 7 days a week for you to call, on our normal practice
number. You can also contact us anytime via email. Please check our social media pages on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram which are updated on a daily basis.

We will continue to be available for you at all times throughout this crisis and beyond

At the moment we have been limited to Advice, Analgesia and Antibiotics (AAA) for dental
emergencies. Do not hesitate to contact us for any problems or concerns. In the most extreme case, there is the possibility of referral to Emergency Dental Hubs which are being set up in Cumbria. I personally have offered my own voluntary service to the emergency Hubs and the NHS centre in Carlisle.

I believe we will be able to start seeing emergency patients at our practice within the next
few weeks towards the end of May in a limited capacity. It is impossible to predict when we will be able to open as normal and continue routine dentistry but I am working as hard as I can to ensure that we can do it as soon as possible and as safely as possible.

I have been sourcing the appropriate Protective Personal Equipment but the priority must be made to the front-line NHS staff and the emergency centres.

The Future after Covid-19

We will continue to maintain the highest levels of infection control at our practice but there will be some changes to minimise the risk even further. We are constantly reviewing the research and sharing knowledge with expert colleagues on coronavirus forums to ensure we keep everyone safe.

Patient care is our top priority and we will continue to invest in the latest technology. We will be installing air purification units for all our surgeries and patient waiting areas in Penrith and Carlisle.

These high-end air sterilisers have been shown to kill viruses and clean other air pollutants. We intend to use these units in conjunction with other additional infection control measures.

I would like to thank you for your trust and patience during these difficult times.

Dr Satya Patel
Principal Dentist

The Strictly Dental team are pleased to present Strictly’s Glitter Ball 2020 in aid of Hospice at Home, Carlisle and North Lakeland. The ball takes place on Saturday 14th March at the Roundthorn Country House in Penrith and features entertainment from the fantastic Soul Junction.

The evening begins as 6:30 pm where guests are welcomed with a glass of fizz, guests will then explore the wonderful venue and enjoy the entertainment we have on offer such as a photobooth with props, a caricature artist, raffle and silent auction which will run throughout the evening. A three course dinner will then be served from 7:15 pm, leading on to a speech from Julie Blundell of Hospice at Home. The dancing will commence at around 9:30 pm with live music from popular local band, Soul Junction before the evening concludes at around midnight.

Tickets for the event are £50p/p, £375 for a table of eight and £450 for a table of ten. If you would like to purchase a ticket/s, you can do so via email at reception@stricklandgatedental.co.uk, via phone on 01768 865744 or in person at Stricklandgate Dental Practice Penrith.

We look forward to seeing you at the Roundthorn on Saturday 14th March!