Swansea Bay's oldest dental nurse retires after 50-year career

After a career spanning more than 50 years which saw her care for thousands of patients, Swansea Bay’s oldest registered dental nurse is taking a very well-earned retirement.

At the age of 68, Angela Warlow is the health board’s oldest registered dental nurse.

The last 35 years of her career have been spent at Talbot Road Dental Practice, in Port Talbot, but her role within dentistry began in 1973, when she secured a job as a dental nurse at Mansel Street Practice after leaving school.

Pictured: Angela (centre) with her colleagues at Talbot Road Dental Practice.

“I remember on my first day the dentist had me assisting him with surgical extractions on people coming off the ships in the docks, so I was really thrown in the deep end,” Angela, from Port Talbot, said.

“I worked there for a few months as a dental nurse and then found a job in Port Talbot working in a general dental practice, where I stayed until 1977.

“I then had a job working in the community dental service in Neath and that’s where I met my husband.”

Pictured: Angela (left) when she was a dental nurse in Saudi Arabia.

Alongside her colleagues, Angela was part of the first group of dental nurses in Swansea Bay to complete the national certification to become qualified.

“Around that time dental nurses started to have more responsibilities,” she added.

“I started the course in Swansea College, in Mount Pleasant, in 1978 and we went once a week in the evenings.

“We sat the exam the following year. It opened doors for me and allowed me to do more things.

“Nowadays, all dental nurses have to be registered.”

After marrying her husband Peter in 1980, the following week Angela went to join him in the Middle East, where he had already taken up a job.

She worked as a dental nurse in Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, before returning to Wales for the birth of their first son.

Five months later, she went back to Abu Dhabi where she stayed until she moved back home in 1985.

Angela said: “I had a few other jobs when we returned home. I worked in Debenham’s and was even Santa’s helper in Port Talbot town centre.

“I then started working in Talbot Road in 1989 and after two years I had my third child.

“I came back to work permanently in 1995 and have worked there ever since.

“Things have changed tremendously. We used to do general anaesthetic in the practices but that was stopped, and we are much busier these days.

“A lot of things have improved over the years; technology has really helped.

“The dental nurses now do more than I ever did at the start of my career.

“They can do fluoride applications, take x-rays and take impressions for the dentists, among other things.”

Angela made the decision to retire at the end of 2024 so she could spend more time with her husband, three children and five grandchildren.

Pictured: Angela with practice owners Janette Harrison and Ann-Marie Howells.

She added: “I have been here for 35 years and it has been a lovely place to work.

“I live in Port Talbot and it has always been a 10-minute walk for me to get to work and it was ideal when the children were in school as the school is just behind the practice too.

“I have always loved working with all of the staff and the patients – I will miss them all.

“I am thankful to the practice and to all of the dentists and staff over the years. They have been great to work with.”

Staff at the practice worked with staff at the Wales National Workforce Reporting System, which provides primary care data, to identify Angela as the health board’s oldest dental nurse.

Talbot Road Dental Practice owners Janette Harrison and Ann-Marie Howells said: “Angela has been part of our dental team for 35 years.

“She has a wealth of experience which she has shared with younger members of staff.

“She has a calm, unflappable manner putting our nervous and younger patients at ease.

“Her cheeky sense of humour has kept us in stitches over the years.

“She will be sorely missed.”