Meet the team

Aidan was born in Ballymoney, Co. Antrim. He is the youngest of eight children. His mother was a fishmonger and his father a farmer. After attending school in Ballymoney at St. Brigid’s Primary and Dalriada Grammar, he qualified with a Batchelor of Dental Surgery degree from Dundee in 1987.

Before coming to Westhill, Aberdeenshire in 1993, Aidan worked in general dental practice in Alnwick and Newcastle for six months followed by a five year spell in Dunfermline in Fife.

In August 1998 Aidan and his wife Maria bought Westhill Dental Practice from Graeme Cruickshank and five years later, moved the practice location to its permanent home at Fir Lodge.

Aidan obtained his Membership of the Faculty of General Dental Practice, (Royal College of Surgeons) in 2001. He followed this up by completing his Diploma in Restorative Dentistry (Royal College of Surgeons) in Manchester in 2008 and was awarded the gold medal for best student.

In addition to general dental practice, Aidan teaches final year dental students at Aberdeen Dental Hospital & Institute of Dentistry.

He has previously been both Treasurer and Chairperson of Aberdeen Local Dental Committee.

He is a full time father to three expensive and untidy children.

In his spare time he likes to walk, golf and do manly jobs at his home/croft/small holding where he is an unpaid stable boy/shepherd. He is also a Radio 4 and Archers addict. A lover of ‘dad jokes’, country music and ‘amdram’, Aidan is a regular performer in his local panto every December. Ever the diva, he insists that a poem or song of his choosing, is performed by him every year!

Aidan and Maria are very proud to have joined Portman Dental Care in December 2019. Aidan does not normally work with a full beard!

Maria qualified with a Batchelor of Dental Surgery degree from Dundee in 1987. In August 1998 Maria and her husband Aidan bought Westhill Dental Practice and five years later, moved the practice location to its permanent home here at Fir Lodge. Since 1998 the practice has been an integral part of daily life for Maria and her family.

Maria enjoys all aspects of her work as a dentist especially welcoming and reassuring her patients both old and new.

In her spare time Maria enjoys riding and currently exercises her daughter’s horse whilst she is at university. She also enjoys gardening, cooking and entertaining both family and friends

Julia is in her second incarnation as a dentist at Westhill Dental Practice - her dental nurse affectionately refers to this as Julia 2.0!

Julia 1.0 began in 1998 and lasted for 6 years, before she moved south to Manchester to have a career break in order to raise her two boys. Julia returned to Westhill Dental Practice in 2014 and was delighted to be reunited with many of her former patients and colleagues.

More recently she has been busy with home projects such as renovation, gardening and up-cycling furniture. She also enjoys cooking and baking- nowadays with the help of her husband and sons! However, long walks and cycling are also very much on the agenda accompanied by their miniature schnauzer, Erica.

For Julia, the best part of being a dentist is connecting with patients both old and new.

Shahab graduated from the University of Mysore, India in 2001. He moved to the U.K to pursue his post graduate studies and completed his MSc in Restorative Dentistry from the University of Newcastle in 2004.

Shahab has been working in the Restorative Dentistry Department at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary and latterly at Aberdeen Dental School and Hospital since 2004. He worked as a Senior House Officer from 2004-2007 and has been Specialty Dentist in the department since 2007. He has been with us at the Westhill Dental Practice since 2012 providing Restorative specialist level care for patients in our practice.

Following Shahab’s MSc in Restorative Dentistry in 2004, he went on to do his Membership of the Faculty of Dental Surgery (MFDS RCS Ed) from the Royal College of Surgeons (Edinburgh). During his MSc, he carried out endodontic research looking at various irrigants in immature teeth. This was published in an international peer reviewed journal.

Shahab provides comprehensive specialist level care for patients in Fixed and Removable Prosthodontics, Periodontics, Endodontics and Implantology. His special interests are broadly related to Endodontics and Prosthodontics including Implantology. In Implantology, he has experience in both Straumann and Nobel Biocare systems and has been placing implants for over 12 years. In Prosthodontics his interests are full mouth rehabilitation including restoring severe tooth wear / tooth surface loss cases and complex denture cases including overdentures.

Shahab is actively involved in the Managed Clinical Network providing training for dentists who have a special interest in Endodontics. He also runs a One stop endodontic clinic at the Dental Hospital where he sees patients with endodontic related problems. The treatments he provides include post removals, perforation repairs, Re-RCT, removal of fractured instruments, and negotiating sclerosed canals. He has also been involved in developing the Head and Neck Restorative Service at the hospital and lectures on the Effects of Radiotherapy to the Oral Environment to the local dental community.

He is a member of the British Society of Prosthodontists, British Society of Periodontology and the International Team for Implantology (ITI).

In his spare time Shahab enjoys spending time with family and friends.

Sumithra completed her specialist Orthodontic training at the University Dental Hospital in Liverpool and she is registered as a specialist by the General Dental Council.

Sumithra was a lecturer in Orthodontics at the University of Liverpool from 1986 until her appointment as a consultant in Orthodontics at Royal Aberdeen Children's Hospital in 1993. Currently, in addition to her private practice, she works as a Consultant Orthodontist in North West London, where she is engaged in training postgraduate specialist registrars.

Sumithra is a member of the British Dental Association, the British Orthodontic Society, the European Orthodontic Society and the World Federation of Orthodontists.

In her spare time Sumithra enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Audrey qualified from Glasgow University with BDS in 1987 and since then has predominantly been employed in Oral Surgery posts. She is on the GDC specialist list and has over 30 years’ experience in Oral Surgery.

She is available for referral of patients with Oral Surgery needs including but not limited to:

• Wisdom tooth removal • Surgical extractions • Soft tissue biopsy • Anxious and phobic patients • Medically complex patients

Patients will be seen by Audrey within Westhill Dental Practice and we aim to offer all patients an appointment within a maximum of 2 weeks of referral date.

In her spare time Audrey enjoys time with friends and family including her 2 dogs!