#238 The Professor — Avijit Banerjee

Payman chats with the world-renowned professor Avijit Banerjee, who shares his journey in academia, discussing his research focused on applying scientific findings to patient care. 

As you’d expect from a polymathic mind like Prof. Banerjee's, the conversation ranges far and wide, covering challenges in dental education, the role of new technologies in diagnosis and the public's perception of fluoride.

Prof. Banerjee also wisdom on clinical judgement, patient communication, the value of documenting cases, and much more.

Enjoy! 

In This Episode

00:03:45 - Academia, research and curiosity

00:10:00 - Research, commercialisation and sharing 

00:18:15 - Recent studies 

00:28:11 - Oral health messaging

00:31:25 - Shift towards whole patient care and holistic dentistry in education

00:33:30 - Training: past, present, UK and abroad

00:42:20 - Advice for young dentists

00:43:20 - NHS funding 

00:48:10 - International teaching and research

00:55:40 - Minimally invasive dentistry 

01:16:40 - New technologies

01:20:10 - Danger of undertreatment

01:23:20 - Experimentation and evidence

01:26:05 - Bureaucracy and red tape 

01:28:05 - Misunderstanding and misinformation

01:34:00 - Fluoride and fissure sealants

01:44:10 - Black box thinking 

01:50:25 - Teaching style 

01:51:25 - Fantasy dinner party 

01:58:40 - Last days and legacy

About Professor Avijit Banerjee

Professor Avijit Banerjee, a global authority in minimally invasive dentistry, leads the Cariology & Operative Dentistry research program at King's College London Faculty of Dentistry, Oral & Craniofacial Sciences. 

He serves as Head of Conservative & MI Dentistry, Director of Education (UG), and Programme Director for the KCL distance-learning Masters in Advanced Minimum Intervention Dentistry.

Banerjee's research focuses on MI operative caries management and adhesive dental biomaterials, resulting in over 120 publications and £2.5 million in research funding. He collaborates with international Industry partners as an R&D KOL and is the primary author of the widely respected text, Pickard's Guide to Minimally Invasive Operative Dentistry.

Banerjee holds editorial positions in several prominent dental journals and maintains a specialist clinical practice in Restorative Dentistry, Prosthodontics & Periodontics. He currently serves as the President of the BDA Metropolitan Branch Section.