Ian Dunn didn't set out to become a periodontist. A chance encounter with a stranger in a hospital corridor, a course he took on a whim, and the absence of anyone else doing the job in Liverpool — that's how a specialism was born. In this episode, Payman sits down with Ian to trace a career shaped as much by happy accidents as by hard graft; from a comprehensive school kid who retook his A-levels, to one of the most respected perio voices in the north west.
They cover the state of the profession — social media's double edge, the case for CPD reform, awards culture, and the strange silence around perio's role in systemic health. Ian is candid about a GDC case that cost him eleven months of sleep, and equally candid about why he'd never swap his associate chair for a principal's desk.
In This Episode
00:01:25 — Growing up in Liverpool
00:02:10 — Student life at Leeds
00:05:35 — Route into dentistry
00:11:50 — Ethics and professionalism
00:18:50 — Life as a GDP
00:19:25 — Route into periodontics
00:29:30 — How perio has changed
00:41:35 — The mouth-body connection
00:46:00 — What's changed in perio
00:52:55 — Good vs great periodontists
00:56:35 — Industry, big pharma and public education
01:00:25 — What grinds your gears
01:05:00 — Social media, awards and measuring success
01:15:25 — Teaching and self-promotion
01:16:30 — Hygienists, teamwork and hierarchy
01:20:25 — Liverpool
01:24:15 — Blackbox thinking
01:27:45 — GDC complaint
01:39:50 — Associate life and practice ownership
01:46:05 — Best lectures and resources
01:53:25 — Fantasy dinner party
01:56:15 — How Ian wants to be remembered
About Ian Dunn
Ian Dunn is a specialist periodontist based at Rose Lane Dental Practice in Liverpool, where he has worked for over 15 years. A graduate of Leeds, he spent a decade as an NHS GDP before finding his way into perio through a combination of luck, timing and relentless curiosity. Alongside his clinical work, Ian teaches on perio courses and has been active with the British Society of Periodontology, where he is a vocal advocate for hygienists, therapists, and anyone who believes the gums are everyone's business.
