Dr Ian Thompson

Biography

Dr Ian Thompson is currently a Reader in Medical Device Innovation at King’s College London. He is based at the Guy’s Hospital campus and has responsibility for developing scientific discoveries through to functioning therapies and devices for a wide range of medical conditions.

One of Ian’s latest projects has been the development and commercialisation of an air polishing powder used to treat tooth sensitivity. He has also worked on the development of orthopaedic devices and assisted in a team developing biological sensors for the early detection of bio-terrorism attacks.

Dr Thompson is responsible for some clinical duties; he leads a team of engineers in producing craniofacial implants for the repair of the facial bones.

Dr Thompson started his career at Queen Mary & Westfield College, London as a biomedical materials engineer, he moved onto Imperial College London where he obtained his PhD with Professor Larry Hench and led a research team for several years.

In addition to holding an academic post, he is also a director of a number of med tech companies and assists in the innovation of new ideas and launching them onto the market.

Over the past ten years Ian has lead a series of sci-art projects bringing the latest scientific developments to the public in a thought provoking and creative way.

In collaboration with an artist, Paddy Hartley, Project Façade is just one example where World War One uniforms were used to illustrate the development of plastic surgery techniques and the treatment of injured servicemen.