We are taking on large numbers of claims for people seeking justice as former patients of the disgraced Nottinghamshire dentist Desmond D’Mello. He was caught and filmed by a whistle blower treating patients and ignoring important infection control procedures.
Failing to wash his hands, reusing gloves, and using unsterilised dentistry equipment are amongst the allegations. Our specialist Daybrook Dental Negligence Team have gained a valuable insight from our clients who are claiming with us about their experiences with D’Mello, whom the media have dubbed the ‘Dirty Dentist’.
Utter Shock
To many, Desmond D’Mello was a pillar of the community. He was more like a friend than a dentist to a significant number of the patients he treated over his 32-year career. Some have described him as “the nicest man you could ever meet” and others have described him as like a “brother” than just another dentist.
But Mr D’Mello was hiding, quite literally, a ‘dirty’ secret after he was allegedly caught ignoring important infection control procedures.
The result is significant and has thrown the local community in to utter shock at the news of just how far this much loved dentist has fallen. People are in disbelief that he has treated them this way. People are finding it hard to accept that such a nice man would put their health – and their lives – in such serious danger.
From an outside perspective it’s difficult to understand just what drove such a well liked man to put as many as 22,000 innocent people at risk of HIV and Hepatitis. Every single client we have taken on has described him in a positive light. The people are in shock that they have been treated this way by such a well liked man.
“Physically Sick”
Many have described feeling physically sick at the news that they may have been exposed to serious blood-borne infections like HIV and Hepatitis. Many are shaken by the mere fact that they may have had reused equipment in their mouths.
Many are now questioning whether things like mouth ulcers and cold sores which developed within close proximity to appointments are related to his practices. It’s still early days, and we’re still gathering the facts about these cases, but we are noticing concerning trends that simply cannot be ignored.
No One Knew
Most people dislike going to the dentist anyway, but Mr D’Mello was largely known as a man who could put his patients at ease. Little did they know that he was putting their lives potentially at risk.
Many clients, upon reflection, have realised little details like Mr D’Mello always calling people in whilst actually wearing gloves; leaving us to wonder whether this was because he was simply reusing them. Some have noticed that he never washed his hands or changed gloves between them and their family having joint appointments, which was never questioned at the time.
People expected he was adhering to hygiene rules as a standard – no one ever thought to question him at all.
As we continue to take on large volumes of cases, we’ll keep you informed about our client’s experiences and comments so far.