History of The British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis

The idea for a hypnosis society was first raised at a meeting of the British Dental Association in May 1952 by dentist Harry Radin. A committee chaired by Eric Wookey then formed what was called the British Society of Dental Hypnosis. With an influx of medical practitioner members this became the Dental and Medical Society for the Study of Hypnosis in 1955. Dr David Keir Fisher and several other colleagues, mainly dentists, founded the Scottish Branch in 1959. In 1961 the London based Hypnotherapy Group, organised by Gordon Ambrose, amalgamated with the Dental and Medical Society for the Study of Hypnosis to create a membership of 600.

In 1968 the society name was changed to The British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis (BSMDH) with several operating branches, and a new Constitution was formed.

In 1982 the 9th Congress of the International Society of Hypnosis (ISH) was hosted by the BSMDH Scottish Branch with sponsorship by the Royal Society of Medicine and the University of Glasgow. Over 800 delegates attended a very successful conference.

The BSMDH Scottish Branch became a registered charity (SC0025360) in 1987 and maintained a healthy membership, an active teaching programme and prominence in National Council. Over time however, differences in policy led to the BSMDH Scottish Branch becoming an independent society, named BSMDH (Scotland) at the AGM in 1991. The former ‘National’ society BSMDH then amalgamated with the British Society of Experimental and Clinical Hypnosis (BSECH) in 2004, becoming The British Society of Clinical and Academic Hypnosis (BSCAH).

While based in Scotland, The British Society of Medical and Dental Hypnosis continues to offer training, workshops and membership to healthcare professionals across the United Kingdom and Ireland and as such in 2022 decided to drop the common usage of (Scotland) from the official society name. BSMDH is proud to be a member in good standing of The European Society of Hypnosis (ESH).