Sustainability takes root in Cardiff's University Dental Hospital and School of Dentistry

18 August 2026

Every fortnight, Consultant Orthodontist Sheelagh Rogers steps back from her clinical work straightening teeth for what she calls a “Greta day”. Referring to the environmental activist Greta Thunberg, Sheelagh champions the reduction of waste and lowering of carbon emissions at the University Dental Hospital in Cardiff alongside Nagham, Lecturer and Sustainability Lead for the School of Dentistry.

The University Dental Hospital is closely integrated with Cardiff University’s School of Dentistry, with both organisations based in the same building. Together Sheelagh and Nagham have led a programme of sustainability initiatives that are now influencing everything from the delivery of services and student research projects to recycling and procurement.

Beverly Withers, Directorate Manager for Dental at Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, said: “Sustainability is now embedded into everything we do. Every decision we make, sustainability is now at the forefront.”

Last year, Sheelagh and Nagham took part in the Bevan Commission’s Exemplar Programme. They used the Commission’s ‘What a WASTE’ approach, which helps teams identify inefficiencies by looking at Workforce, Administration, Services, Treatments, Energy use and Systems (WASTES).

One of the first areas they focused on was workforce. Within the dental surgical theatre, patient procedures were, on occasion, being cancelled because there was no scrub nurse available. By upskilling dental nurses to gain scrub nurse competencies, the hospital reduced cancellations while creating valuable development opportunities for staff.

The programme also identified opportunities to reduce waste in everyday practice, such as a dental instrument kit that was routinely double-wrapped in paper despite there being no clinical requirement to do so. By reducing the wrapping to a single layer, the hospital saved more than £1,500 in one year while cutting waste throughout the process.

Some of the most effective ideas have come from frontline staff. When paper hand towels ran out in the Dental Hospital, housekeeper David Kehone questioned why they were needed when hand dryers were already available. Following discussions with Infection Prevention and Control colleagues, it was confirmed the towels were not required. Removing them will save over £5,000 each year and reduce carbon emissions by 3780 kg - equivalent to the household energy needed to run family home for a year. “Getting engagement at all levels is really important,” said Sheelagh.

Patients are also being encouraged to make more sustainable choices through environmentally friendly products available at reception, including toothbrushes, interdental brushes and dental floss.

Sheelagh and Nagham recently organised their second annual Sustainability in Dentistry (SID) Talks, with staff and students showcasing projects demonstrating how environmentally conscious approaches can also improve patient care. Christina Williams, Specialist Registrar in Oral Surgery, spoke about delivering Intermediate Oral Surgery at locations across Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan rather than solely at the University Dental Hospital. Her calculations showed that by providing services closer to home, patients travelled 7,000 less miles for first appointments alone over one year, significantly lowering carbon emissions.

For Sheelagh, sustaining momentum will be key to long-term change. “It’s an agenda that’s not going to go away,” she said. “I’m proud that we’ve set up a joint working group and have involved so many different people. Sustainable change needs leadership, persistence and someone who continues to ‘champion’ this agenda.

“Trying to improve patients’ dental care in a sustainable way and embed it into education is a good news story. Even if the changes we make are incrementally small, we can still make a difference.”

Photo: (L-R) Sheelagh Rogers, Dental Nurses Julie and Laura and speakers at the SID Talks: Nagham, Christina, Awab, Daniel, Kathryn and Sheelagh.