Richard Johns, a pioneer in dental implantology who established the first UK school for implant techniques, has died at the age of 96. In 1991, together with Swedish professor Per-Ingvar Brånemark, he founded the Dental Implant Institute in Sheffield, offering both training courses and patient treatment.
Early life and career
Born in Sutton, Surrey, to Walter, an accountant, and Cynthia (née Gamble), a secretary, Johns attended St Paul’s school in London. After completing national service as a dental orderly with the RAF in Hong Kong, he enrolled at Guy’s Hospital in 1949 to study dentistry, qualifying in 1955. That same year he married Pam Thurgood, a teacher he met through the Inter Varsity social club.
Johns began his career as a house surgeon at Guy’s and a part-time registrar, while also working as an associate at a practice in New Eltham, south London. After three years, he opened his own practice in Orpington, Kent, with Pam handling accounts and after-hours calls.
Academic and research contributions
Johns later took on a part-time teaching role at Guy’s, eventually becoming a full-time lecturer and closing his practice in 1968. While at Guy’s, he conducted research on dental implants and earned a PhD in 1973. He published numerous research papers on the subject. In 1981, he was appointed professor of restorative dentistry at the University of Sheffield.
One of his patients in Sheffield was Sir Ronald Hobson, an entrepreneur and philanthropist who provided financial support to establish the Dental Implant Institute in 1991.
Retirement and legacy
After retiring in 1998, Johns and Pam moved to Winchester, Hampshire, where they built their retirement home, naming it Manaccan after the Cornish village where titanium—used in dental implants—was discovered in 1791 by Rev William Gregor. In 2002, Johns organized the unveiling of a plaque in Manaccan to honor Brånemark’s pioneering work.
Johns also served as president of the British Endodontic Society, the British Society for Restorative Dentistry, and the odontological section of the Royal Society of Medicine. Pam died in 2013. He is survived by five children—Susan, Katharine, Lucy, Tim, and the author—16 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren.
