Welcome to What I Wish I Knew by Dental Head Start. This is a podcast where we learn from people that have been there, made the mistakes, learnt the lessons and have developed into the accomplished dental professionals they are today.

It’s your weekly mentoring session.

Hosted by Dr Cigdem Kipel

This is a slightly controversial subject, so we’re going to lean into it with Dr Tim Maxwell.

It’s no secret that there are some specialist orthodontists who are against general dentists performing ortho. One of the reasons is that there is too vast a difference between the depth of education an orthodontist receives versus what’s available for general dentists to start immediately practicing ortho. 

For a GP dentist wanting to learn ortho, not having the full support of the specialists doesn’t provide much confidence in what’s already a daunting educational pursuit. Not only that, there are strongly held and contentious opinions out there when it comes to different aspects of ortho: extraction vs non extraction, fixed vs clear aligners, age of intervention, degrees of airway involvement and more, further adding to the confusion. 

Dr Tim Maxwell shares how he learned the importance of gaining both breadth and depth in navigating the world of orthodontic education for GPs. He talks about how to critically evaluate various education providers to gain a balanced perspective on the landscape and practice ortho competently and safely.


Dr Timothy Maxwell

Dr. Tim graduated from the University of Western Australia dux of his class in 2014. He was awarded the two highest honours for a graduating student: the Royal Australasian College of Dental Surgeons Prize for top graduate, and the Welten Prize in Clinical Dentistry for top clinical graduate. He also achieved undergraduate prizes in histology, head and neck anatomy, endodontics, periodontics, general medicine and oral medicine.

Dr. Tim practices the full scope of dentistry, with a special focus on cosmetic dentistry, orthodontics and oral surgery. He has completed two years of additional private training in orthodontics with Progressive Orthodontic Seminars in Sydney, and provides both fixed braces and clear aligner solutions including Invisalign™. He has completed further surgical training in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia in dentoalveolar and implant surgery, and maintains a strong passion for digital dentistry using 3D scanning and printing technology.

Born and bred in Perth, Dr. Tim is a keen surfer and parent of two young Border Collies, Mochi and Kimchi. Prior to settling back in Perth, Tim’s partner Sophie and himself practiced dentistry in Singapore and regional New South Wales. Sophie and Tim’s first clinic will be opening in Mount Hawthorn, 5 minutes from the Perth CBD, in the future.


If you’re a dental student or graduate, here are 4 ways I can help you transition to private practice.

  1. Download the 10 Tips to Successfully Transition to Private Practice – This is a culmination of the things i’ve learnt over the years that I think are worth considering for all grads. I’ve included reference links throughout.
  2. Check Out The 4Sight Dental On Demand Webinar – We cover communication, getting a job and excelling in that job with Dr Omid Azami, Dr Jesse Green and myself!
  3. Find the CPD you need on CPD Junkie – Australia’s most comprehensive CPD Database, exclusive discounts and content.
  4. Clarify your goals, vision and lessons with the 4Sight Dental Journal – In fact you can get this and the webinar for 50% off! Use the code ‘DHS2020’

RIPE Global

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In this exceptionally difficult time for our profession, we need to look at the silver lining. With time, we can work on ourselves and work on our dentistry. And what better way then with RIPE Global

In a market flooded with online content, RIPE Global sits head and shoulders above the rest. Enjoy some of the most useful yet professionally created online content anywhere in the world, for just $59AUD/month.

Benefits include

  • Access to over 200 hours of lecture recordings and clinical videos.
  • Phone, email and chat support
  • 4 Dentistry Fundamentals courses per year (valued at $1075). (Restoration Fundamentals is an example of this style of product.)
  • 4 Exclusive Live and interactive Q&A sessions per year (valued at $10K)

My crown prep workflow is modelled on Lincoln’s video from the academy 3 years ago! This will change your practicing career.


Dental Practitioner Support

Dental Practitioner Support is the first national 24/7 telephone and online service to support dental practitioner health and wellbeing in Australia.

The service is free, confidential and independent. Remember, good practice involves seeking support when you need it. Dental practitioners can call and speak to an experienced team ready to provide advice on a wide range of issues, including mental and physical health, workplace issues and general wellbeing.

Call them anytime you need, and even save the number in your phone so that it’s there on the day that you need it.

1800 377 700 or visit the website www.dpsupport.org.au


Principle Practice Management Software 

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Cloud based dental software, rethought from the ground up for 2021 and beyond. Finally, an intelligent platform that optimises every process and workflow from scheduling to treatment planning to account management.

Designed for intuitiveness, Principle offers seamless interconnectivity between patients, appointments, staff, tasks, notes, meetings, labs and more. This means fewer clicks, fuller books, faster communication, nothing slipping through the cracks and greater business transparency. 

Principles of best practice embedded in software design to keep your team lean and your time productively occupied.

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