OVER 20+ YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

Originally trained in South Africa, Dr Shahana completed her dental degree at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg in 2002. She spent her early career working across hospital, community, and private practice settings, including rural and under-resourced communities, where she developed a strong commitment to prevention, access to care, and public health education. Her work in these settings led to the delivery of dental health education programs in lower socio-economic communities and contributed to her early recognition for service and outreach.

2007 - PASSIONATE ABOUT TEACHING

In 2007, Dr Shahana migrated to Australia and subsequently completed the Australian Dental Council (ADC) examinations, registering with the Australian Dental Board. Alongside private clinical practice, she pursued an academic pathway, teaching undergraduate dentistry at universities in South Africa, the UK, and Australia, including many years at Griffith University on the Gold Coast. Teaching and mentorship have remained a central part of her professional identity ever since.

Clinically, Dr Shahana practises across general, aesthetic, and implant dentistry, with a particular focus on full-facial harmonisation. Her work integrates smile design, veneers, crowns and bridges, Invisalign, and implant dentistry, with implant care delivered from surgical placement through to final prosthetic restoration. She is a Fellow and Master of the International Congress of Oral Implantologists (ICOI). In parallel, she is an advanced aesthetic practitioner, offering medical-grade skin and facial treatments including chemical peels, skin needling, mesotherapy, PRP, and therapeutic applications such as management of bruxism-related jaw pain, migraines, and hyperhidrosis.

Her clinical philosophy is holistic and patient-centred, combining technical excellence with empathy, communication, and trust. She is widely recognised by patients for her calm, considered approach and her ability to integrate dental, facial, and psychological factors into treatment planning.

Beyond clinical dentistry, Dr Shahana has undertaken extensive postgraduate and academic development. She has pursued advanced studies in dento-facial aesthetics and implantology and was awarded a Doctor of Science (DSc) for her research examining the role of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and communication psychology in patient communication within multilingual clinical settings. Her research continues to inform her work in consultation design, consent, cultural competence, and clinician–patient trust.

2022 - AURORA ACADEMY

Dr Shahana is deeply engaged in professional education and knowledge dissemination. In 2022, she founded Aurora Academy, a global dental education platform providing undergraduate and postgraduate training, mentorship, and hybrid learning programs to dentists worldwide. Aurora Academy has been recognised for its innovative integration of distance learning with practical, hands-on education and structured mentorship pathways, particularly for internationally trained clinicians.

HER EXPERTISE

Her educational work increasingly focuses on healthcare communication, cultural competence, clinician wellbeing, and mentally sustainable practice models, alongside clinical excellence. She is actively involved in mentoring early-career dentists and overseas-trained clinicians navigating registration, integration, and long-term practice in Australia.

In addition to her clinical and academic roles, Dr Shahana holds formal qualifications in journalism and creative writing. She is the author of reflective and academic pieces exploring dentistry, communication, professional identity, and wellbeing, and hosts a newsletter and podcast, Regulate, examining the human side of healthcare practice.

Dr Shahana has been recognised for her professional and community contributions, including honours from South African and international organisations. Her work reflects a commitment to ethical, culturally attuned, and human-centred healthcare — balancing clinical precision with communication, education, and compassion.

Above all, she describes her most challenging and grounding role as being a mother, a perspective that continues to shape her views on leadership, sustainability, and purpose in modern healthcare.