A DENTAL nurse who cut her teeth training with the North-East Chamber of Commerce has picked up a national award for the outstanding quality of her work.

East Herrington Dental Practice's Katrina Graham won the Dental Nurse of the Year award at the 2001 Probe Dental awards at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London.

Katrina is one of seven nurses at the County Durham practice to have completed dental training through the chamber.

The practice is also in the unique position of employing three sisters who have all gained the National Certificate in Dental Nursing through work experience and night classes at the chamber's training centre in Sunderland.

Rose sisters Joanne Barella, Gillian Buckley and Katherine White have followed each others' footsteps to qualify as dental nurses and work together at the same practice. Meanwhile, Katrina has moved up to be senior nurse at East Herrington with responsibility for a team of 15 staff.

East Herrington Dental Practice manager Michael Oliver said he was not surprised that Katrina had won.

"She has proved herself an exceptional member of our team and her work is typical of the high quality staff who have undergone training through the chamber."

Also in Sunderland, Wessington Way Dental Practice, where three other chamber trainees are successfully building dental careers, has picked up the award for Practice Environment of the Year.