Dentists

Keith Nelson

Keith Nelson heads a dental dynasty. He leads a quartet of dentists that includes his daughters Deanna and Vikki; his other daughter became a barrister. Including time at dental school, Keith has been immersed in dentistry for over half a century. He has seen many changes in the past five decades and can claim to have been at the forefront of many of them having brought back progressive ideas from The United States and England where he has also worked and trained. He was one of the first dentists in New Zealand to do nitrous oxide sedation, one of the first to do dental implants and also broke a gentlemen's agreement that restricted surgery hours to nine to five by offering working patients appointments before or after work.

Three years after graduating Keith started his first practice in Glen Eden and he still sees many of his original patients as well as their children and grandchildren. Away from home and work Keith's main passion is rugby. He was an All Black while still a student, touring the United Kingdom, Ireland and France and also played for Ponsonby, Otago and Auckland before hanging up his boots and serving in various capacities including President of Auckland Rugby Union.

Deanna Nelson

Deanna is the youngest of the 3 Nelson daughters & the second to follow in her dads footsteps. Like her father and sister, Deanna trained and qualified in Otago. She joined the team in 1994 and has worked in the Ponsonby practice since its opening in 1996.
Whilst she enjoys all aspects of general dentistry, Deanna has a real passion for Orthodontics. "Improving smiles and more often entire faces is very rewarding. In a lot of instances, Orthodontic treatment has a positive effect on the patients overall health. Seeing someone's confidence develop over the course of the treatment is fulfilling for both patient and dentist".

Deanna has completed many post graduate courses in orthodontics, Implant dentistry and cosmetic dentistry. She is a member of the NZ Functional Orthodontic Society, The NZ Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, The Auckland Dental Association and the NZ Dental Association.

Deanna likes to keep fit and enjoys both the gym and the outdoors. Her two young children, Liam and Frankie, are both real characters and keep her life very busy in the weekends!

Vikki Nelson

Vikki is the middle one of the 3 nelson girls. After studying economics at Otago, she then went on to complete her dental training and graduated in 1992.
Originally she started working at the west Auckland practice where she gained a huge amount of experience extracting teeth under general anesthetic & where she became hugely interested in the cosmetic side of tooth straightening (or orthodontics).
"To see children's confidence grow and develop purely from creating a great smile is something immensely rewarding" - especially nowadays when the whole procedure takes a relatively short period of time with minimal discomfort.
Away from the daily challenges of work, she keeps herself busy with her 3 children Ali, Tane & Gabi. Who, like all young children nowadays, have a lot of fun activities to attend after school and on weekends.
Vikki does still manage to have a balance in her life, and likes to keep fit & active working out at the gym, skiing, walking and occasionally running.

At present she is a current member of the NZ Dental Association, Auckland Dental Association, NZ Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry and the NZ functional Orthodontic Society.
This enables her to keep up with the latest advancements in dentistry.

Amanda Hawkins

Amanda comes from Christchurch where she got a BSc before moving south to study dentistry at Otago Dental School. She was keen to go into one of the health professions and because she is good with her hands working as a dentist was a natural choice. She first joined Keith Nelson's team in 1995, when she was based at the Glen Eden branch. She left in 2000 to start her own practice in Massey, which she has since sold so she could spend more time with her family. Amanda now works at the Keith Nelson practice four days a week.

The people side of dentistry and getting to know new patients is a huge attraction for Amanda. She enjoys the variety of work that general dentistry offers. The profession is changing all the time, new materials become available and there is a lot of new technology. To learn about developments like this Amanda keeps herself updated by attending courses.

Away from work, much of Amanda's time is taken up looking after her two children.

Stela Dimitrova

Stela Dimitrova has considerable experience as a dentist including Bulgaria, USA and now in NZ.

She graduated at the Faculty of Stomatology in Sofia as a Stomatologist, a specialty which includes not only gums and teeth problems, their treatments and prevention of diseases, but also oral pathology and oral medicine.

After leaving her home country, she sat exams in USA and obtained a DDS. Degree in Dentistry in Los Angeles.

She has been part of the Keith Nelson team, since 2004, starting off in our Glen Eden branch. In February 2011 she joined us at the Ponsonby based Keith Nelson practice.

Her goal is prevention and early detection of dental problems, stabilisation of patient's dentitions with minimal possible intervention and maintenance, so they can have their natural teeth for as long as possible. Stela has a very nurturing manner and will relax even the most nervous of patients.

She keeps up with the latest advances in dentistry, by attending courses and being a member of NZ Dental Association and NZ Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.

Stela is married and has a son.

Away from work she loves listening to classical music, walking, travelling and meeting people from different nationalities.

Hygienists

Kathy Allsopp

Kathy is a fully qualified hygienist. She has been working at Keith Nelsons since 1996. Kathy will clean and polish your teeth, and keep your gums and supporting structures in top condition. She will educate you about the home maintenance and care that will prevent gum disease and decay. Kathy also performs our in-house whitening procedures. She loves giving patients a brighter healthier smile that they can be proud of.

Kathy is a member of the NZ Dental Hygienists Association and attends regular courses to keep up to date in the latest dental hygiene techniques and treatments.

Nisha Patel

Nisha is a fully qualified Dental Hygienist and Dental Therapist. She has international experience in the dental industry and has been working at Keith Nelsons since 1994. She will clean and polish your teeth to an exceptional standard and give thorough instructions for at-home care. Nisha is passionate about children and adolescents oral care, She has a big input in caring for the young people at our family practice. She keeps abreast of all the latest techniques and dental materials used in paediatric dentistry and hygiene.

Nisha is a member of the NZ Dental Hygienists Association and the NZ Dental Therapists Association.

Practice Manager

Melanie Quedley

Melanie Quedley has worked for the Nelson family for ten years. She started as a receptionist, did a dental assistant certificate and worked in the surgeries before moving into her present management role. She was the branch manager for two years before taking on her present role as Practice Manager. So what does this job entail? "I do everything behind the scenes, including all our office work. I also oversee & make sure things run smoothly in the surgeries and reception."

Looking ahead Mel is just keen to make the staff the best that they can be, reminding them about excellence and generally ensuring that everyone working in the practice loves being there and gives the best they can.

Mel has two girls, Bailee and Astyn.

Nurses

The dental assistants are a very integral part of our dental team. Each of our dental assistants are certified and have been specially trained by us to provide a very high standard of care.

As well as assisting the dentist and running impeccable cleaning and sterilisation procedures, they aim to create a relaxing environment for you, the patient. They are a great bunch of girls and are committed to making each and every patient feel at ease during their dental treatment at Keith Nelson and Associates.

Administration

Your initial contact with Keith Nelson & Associates will be with our friendly administration staff. They will welcome you into the practice, make you an appointment time to suit, and happily answer any questions you may have regarding your dental visit. Their aim is to create a relaxing environment and make you, the patient, feel totally at ease.

Payment plans, reminder phone calls and check-up appointment reminders are just some of the services we provide our patients. Our practice manager, Melanie Quedley, is always on hand to assist with any queries you may have.