A DENTIST who has worked tirelessly to improve services in south-east Asia has been shortlisted for the UK Young Dentist of the Year title.

Lydia Pink, who has been a dentist for four years, has worked at the Sparkly Smile dental surgery in Montpelier Vale, Blackheath, for the past year-and-a-half.

On December 12, the 30-year-old and nine other nominees from around the country will attend the third annual Dentistry Awards in Leicester.

Winners will be announced by former athlete and TV presenter Kris Akabusi.

Miss Pink, of Brownhill Road, Hither Green, stood out from other entrants because of her work in Vietnam and Cambodia where she raised thousands of pounds for dental surgeries and trained dental nurses.

She said: “It’s nice to know the work I have done has been appreciated. I really am so excited about the awards.

“I would like to think I have got a good chance of winning but we will have to wait and see. Me and all my colleagues can’t wait for to travel up north for the ceremony.”

Miss Pink spent three months planning a trip to Vietnam before jetting off to the towns of Saigon and Hanoi, where she set up a mobile dentist clinic for young children.

While there she also raised around £8,000 through donations and various fundraising events.

She then visited Cambodian capital Phnom-Penh, where she raised more than £3,000 to pay for a dentist’s chair in a local clinic.

Before coming home she also spent time training dental nurses at the International University of Cambodia.

Miss Pink added: “I’m hoping to go again soon. I want to get sponsorship so some of the residents of the town I visited will be able to pay to train as dental nurses and run their own clinic.”

To enter, Miss Pink had to write 500 words explaining why she deserved to win the trophy and certificate backed up with references from her colleagues.