Tania (left) treats a smiling young patientTania Lee Paterson
Dental therapist 1300SMILES Cairns Central and Smithfield.

"I am looking forward to establishing friendly, reliable and trusting relationships with the families that I have the opportunity to meet."

I am a South Australian trained dental therapist with more than 25 years experience, and currently work part time with 1300SMILES Cairns. I have worked with the school dental service in both South Australia and
Queensland.

My function as a Dental Therapist is to work with children aged 4 to 18years exclusively to provide most of the commonly required functions for children and adolescence of this age. This includes examination, X Rays, treatment diagnosis and treatment planning, restorations (fillings) on both deciduous (baby) teeth, as well as permanent (adult) teeth. Cleaning and scaling, polishing, fluoride treatments, impressions, mouth guards, and fissure sealants. Emergency treatment due to trauma and/or decay, extractions of baby teeth, oral health and diet instruction and education as well as group, parent and classroom education sessions.

My family and I moved to Cairns in 2004 from Adelaide, and are now happy to call Cairns home!

I am married to Rob, and have 4 children, Kaitlin, Mitchell, Lliam and Lachlan (aged 15, 14, 12 and 9). They attended school locally here in Cairns, and all are engaged in local community sports and activities, so I feel that I can identify closely with the busy and dynamic family lives of my clients as many of us share like minded pursuits, goals and dreams.

As a family, we lead busy lives and we find ourselves juggling many after school activities and weekend events. My children are particularly interested in cross country running, swimming, and surf life saving... so therefore by association so am I!

I am a former dance instructor and ran my own dance school in Adelaide for a number of years, but now enjoy scuba diving and snorkeling, swimming, gardening, reading and travel.

We are also currently renovating our house...when time allows!

I am a highly committed individual, and I value the opportunity of being part of the 1300SMILES Team and being able to provide a high quality, personalized service which is highly sought after, in a safe, relaxed and
friendly environment that is specifically tailored to the needs of young patients.

My aim is to have my young clients receive individualized and gentle care , in an encouraging manner, free of anxiety and fear, at a pace that is specifically suited to their level of confidence and then, to have them continue on to adulthood not only with excellent oral health, but also with a positive outlook towards their future dental experiences.

I am looking forward to establishing friendly, reliable and trusting relationships with the families that I have the opportunity to meet.

I look forward to meeting you and your family and guarantee that I will strive to do my very best for you all!!

Please let me know if there is anything I can assist you with in providing excellent care for your most valuable asset in life ... your children.

Keep Smiling!!!
Tania.

Editor: Read Tania's articles on dental health here.