Meet the SAAD Trustees

Yi Loo

President & Assistant Editor of the SAAD Digest

Yi is a Specialist in Paediatric Dentistry based at Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals and St George's Hospital in London providing dental care under sedation and teaching postgraduate students. She completed the Diploma in Conscious Sedation at Newcastle University and has a background as a GDP providing advanced adult and paediatric sedation, as part of an experienced multidisciplinary team.

Sadie Hughes

Immediate Past President

Sadie is a Consultant in Special Care Dentistry and the Sedation Lead for Hertfordshire Special Care Dental Service. She completed an MSc in Sedation and Special Care Dentistry in 2003 at King’s College London Dental Institute. Her clinical interests include sedation and behavioural management for adolescents requiring dental treatment and the dental management of adults with additional needs. Sadie is a past chair of the Sedation Training Accreditation Committee.


Manni Deol

Clinical Advisor & Hon. Secretary

Manni has been a general dental practitioner for 25 years working in NHS and private practice, based in the West Midlands. Her special interests include Sedation and Teaching. She provides intravenous sedation at her practice and has worked in the Department of Sedation and Special Care Dentistry at Guys Hospital in the past. Manni's other roles include Foundation training (17 years experience) and being an elected member of the LDC Coventry.


Paul Howlett

Treasurer & Communications Secretary

Paul works as a GDP in a private multi-disciplinary dental practice in Teesside. His specific areas of interest are managing anxious patients and more complex restorative care including dental implants. Previously, Paul spent 5 years working as part of a dedicated team providing advanced conscious sedation techniques for paediatric patients and continues to use single drug intravenous and inhalation sedation as part of his daily clinical practice. Paul has been a SAAD trustee since 2012.

Carole Boyle

Course Director

Carole is a Consultant and Clinical Lead for Special Care Dentistry at Guy’s, and St Thomas’ Hospitals in London. Her particular interests are using sedation for people who require special care, teaching sedation both to undergraduates and postgraduates and providing dental care under general anaesthesia. She is a member of Dental Council at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.


Simon Chaplin-Rogers

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Stephanie Fensan

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Rick Kerr

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Ronan Lee

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Thomas Lees

Thomas is a Specialist in Oral Surgery and departmental clinical lead for sedation at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust. He completed a Post-graduate diploma in Conscious Sedation for Dentistry at Cardiff University and provides clinical sedation teaching / mentoring to Dental Core Trainees, Oral Surgery Specialty Trainees and Specialty Dentists. He also runs sedation study days for NHS England and local / regional dental teams.
Thomas also undertakes IV sedation in a local specialist dental practice.

Laleh Sharifian

Laleh has been a GDP in a private practice in London for over 20 years, providing IV Sedation in primary care and started a peripatetic IV sedation service 6 years ago following a demand in this niche. She now limits her service to this field and sedates in over 30 practices in the South East of England. Laleh is part of the faculty at SAAD; teaches and runs life support training courses, (D)ILS, for sedation practices and also undertakes expert witness work in relation to sedation. Laleh is an examiner for the royal college of surgeons of Edinburgh and a sedation mentor for dentists.


Zahra Shehabi

Zahra is a Consultant in Special Care Dentistry at the Royal London Dental Hospital. She completed MSc's in Sedation and Special Care Dentistry in 2011 (Kings College, London) and Healthcare Management in 2016 (City University, London). Zahra is heavily involved in undergraduate and postgraduate sedation teaching and is a member of the SAAD Teaching Faculty. Her clinical interests include intravenous sedation (basic and advanced techniques) for patients with challenging behaviour and those undergoing implant surgery.

Ashleigh Stamp

Ashleigh is a Clinical Fellow at Newcastle University School of Dental Sciences. She works within paediatric dentistry providing patient care and clinical teaching to dental and dental therapy undergraduates as well as supporting postgraduate education within the region. Ashleigh completed the Diploma in Conscious Sedation at Newcastle University and has a background working as a GDP providing conscious sedation to adults and children in primary care. Ashleigh is currently undertaking a PhD relating to behavioural support for young people receiving surgical dental care.


Imran Suida



Co-opted Board Members

Christopher Holden

SAAD Safe Sedation Practice Scheme Lead

Chris has been a GDP in primary care for 40 years. He has been an author of most national guidance documents on dental sedation in the last 15 years. Chris provides expert evidence in the UK, Europe and worldwide and is a past president of The International Federation of Dental Anaesthesiology Societies.


Nigel Robb

Editor of the SAAD Digest

Nigel is a Reader/Hon. Professor Restorative Dentistry and Educational Lead for Sedation and Special Care Dentistry at Griffith University, Gold Coast, Australia. He has a vast experience in the subject of Conscious Sedation having co-authored one of the standard text books on the subject. He is an authority and renowned international speaker on the subject of Conscious Sedation.


Updated 30.09.2024