Research

My research activity is varied and recent projects have included the following:

• Postgraduate training in temporomandibular joint (TMJ) surgery
• The design, implementation and assessment of virtual learning environments (VLEs) in postgraduate education
• Restructuring of post-graduate education in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic
• Delphi study to generate variables for inclusion in a clinical predictor rule for the likelihood of facial fractures on a plain film radiograph
• The place of Aristotelian ethics in postgraduate surgical training

I have a Masters in Medical Education (MMedEd) from the critically acclaimed Centre for Medical Education at the University of Dundee. I am currently undertaking a doctoral degree (MD) by research at the Institute of Inflammation and Ageing at the University of Birmingham.

I regularly publish in peer-reviewed journals such as the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Journal of Medical Ethics and the Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons. I have previously been invited to join the UNESCO Chair of Bioethics Unit based at Edge Hill University in Ormskirk and am also an Associate Editor for the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, acting as Guest Editor for a special edition of the journal focusing on TMJ surgery in 2024.

I am currently Chief Investigator for the Birmingham Mandible and Midface (BruMM) Rules study, which aims to develop a clinical predictor rule for the likelihood of facial fractures on plain film radiographs. The aim of this project is to reduce the number of unnecessary radiographs taken for trauma patients, reducing radiation dose to patients and cost to the NHS.

Finally, I am the developer of the XEDAQ app for temporomandibular disorders (TMDs), a wellness app which is available to users on App Store (iOS) and Google Play Store.

Educational roles

As well as my clinical activity, I have an academic commitment to the University of Birmingham as an Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer. I coordinate the Human Diseases module in the undergraduate Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) module at the University, responsible for ensuring that the dentists of the future understand the breadth of infection, pathology, pharmacology, medicine, surgery and therapeutics and preparing them to care for patients holistically in their future careers. I provide quality assurance for the Bristol Dental School at the University of Bristol and The School of Clinical Dentistry at the University of Sheffield as invited External Examiner (2022/23 – 2026/27).

In addition to this, I am both a Senior Academic Tutor and Personal Mentor for undergraduate medical students at the University of Birmingham, sitting on admissions interview panels and exam boards.

At a postgraduate level, I am a former examiner for the MFDS examinations with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow and a current Assigned Educational Supervisor for junior trainees. I have co-authored textbooks on subjects as diverse as interview skills for dentists and revision guides for the FRCS(OMFS) exit examination. I have co-authored book chapters on subjects as diverse as Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS), oral prosthodontic rehabilitation of oral cancer patients, management of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) dislocation and an overview of extended temporomandibular joint replacements (eTMJRs). In conjunction with colleagues, I created an eponymous system for classifying eTMJR devices, widely cited in the scientific literature as the Elledge classification.

I am the former Regional Education Lead for the West Midlands for higher surgical trainees in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. As part of this role I helped create and maintain a virtual learning environment (VLE) during the COVID-19 pandemic, publishing findings on trainee reception in the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. I regularly lecture on both the DePuy Synthes FRCS(OMFS) Revision Course and BAOMS Flex Facs to higher surgical trainees nationally.