DentaltownUK April 2018 - 50

What time do you usually get up?
I always wake up early-by 5 or 6 a.m.
What do you eat for breakfast?
A bowl of cornflakes with some fruit; or
toast and cheese, often with a glass of water.
How do you travel to work?
Work for me now means going to an
archive, library or somewhere to interview
someone. I might leave the car at the station,
then it is often the tube up to town. Or
perhaps I might take the car to visit someone.

Name: Stanley Gelbier
Age: I guess that I am not in the
normal age group for interviewees!
I was 82 in November 2017
How would you sum yourself
up in just three words?
The eternal optimist!

Once home in the evenings,
what do you do to relax?
I catch up on the news via newspapers
and TV. It almost shocks people to find that
I am also a soap addict! I catch up with them
at night, because I am an insomniac.
Where did you qualify from?
The Royal Dental Hospital of London
(1961).
What were your favourite
areas of dentistry?
As a student I loved paediatric dentistry
and orthodontics, and I had thoughts
of becoming an orthodontist. As with so
many things in life, that was entirely because
I had such good teachers in these subjects
at the Royal.

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50

APRIL 2018 // dentaltownuk.com

What appealed to you
about a career in dentistry?
It seemed to be interesting, and would
provide a reasonable income.
Who were some of your influences
you looked up to during your childhood?
There were two important influences.
My father, a London taxi driver, was a major
influence. He gave me lots of knowledge
about London ,which I came to love. Another
influence was an uncle who fought against
the odds to become a consultant anaesthetist.

Has any patient stood
out during your career?
Strangely, one for whom I provided
restorations during my student days. After
he sat down, I said, 'Open' ... and he very
slowly opened his mouth like an automaton,
and kept it there for two to three hours whilst
I treated him.
Do you think there is enough
in the dental curriculum about
the business side of dentistry?
I believe strongly that the denta l
curriculum must provide a grounding about
the business side of running a dental business.
My own interest in the business side of dentistry
was in managing many community clinics.
Tell us more about the extracurricular
activities you took part in during your
undergraduate education.
I was lucky that the Royal was in Leicester
Square, in the heart of London's theatre land.
We had lots of free tickets, of which I was a
heavy consumer-that was when I developed
my love of musicals. I also enjoyed ballroom
dancing, having a bronze medal to show for
it. A lot of time was spent taking photographs
and then processing them in the darkroom.
During my clinical days I took a lot of
clinical photos; nowadays they are of
grandchildren or zoo animals. Much time
was devoted to my fellow student, Marilyn,
whom I married six months after qualifying.
She was still a student!
What did you find most challenging
during your undergraduate studies?
I never really learned to be a good
technician during our mechanics course.
Constructing full or partial dentures was
not my forte!
What advice would you give to younger
students now entering the profession?
I would say you are entering a wonderful
profession, full of opportunities to satisfy
both you and your patients. Give as well as
take and you will have much happiness. ■
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DentaltownUK April 2018
