1300SMILES has just hired another smiling face in response to a greater demand for dentistry in Tweed and the Gold Coast.

Dr Lisa Kim has joined two other dentists, a nurse and practice manager at the Tweed Heads dental practice.

Practice manager Laetitia Raussin said the addition of another dentist would help cope with the 40,000 new residents predicted to move to the Tweed in the next 20 years.

“Because of rapid population growth in Tweed and the southern Gold Coast there has been a strain on dental services for quite some time,” Ms Raussin said.

“We're very excited to welcome Dr Kim to our team, not only because of the important ser- vices that she will provide, but also given her strong ties to this community.”

1300SMILES operates 21 multi-dentist practices throughout Queensland and NSW.

Dr Kim was previously working for one of the dental group's Townsville practices but was excited to pack up her graduate degree and Diploma of Dental Science to work alongside experienced practitioners Dr Richard Kneebone and Dr Omid Salar.

Dr Kneebone emigrated from England to work in Australia four years ago with a strong interest in denture work.

Dr Salar previously ran a surgery with his mother in Iran for six years and is a root-canal specialist.

Ms Raussin said the structure of the practice would make it easy for Dr Kim to settle into work with the team.

“Our practice was designed to cater for ongoing expansion of our dental staff and services in order to meet future demand,” Ms Raussin said.

Visit 1300SMILES at Homemart on Tweed, Minjungbal Drive, Tweed Heads South.