Straight Talk: Revisiting a controversial article and the importance of the Modern Millennial Hygienist

There’s no question that Patti DiGangi and Shirley Gutkowski shook things up when they wrote their article, “3 reasons why a Modern Millennial Hygienist does not perio chart.” The article by these two respected dental hygienists took social media by storm and was passionately discussed by their peers throughout the country.

In her latest edition of Straight Talk, Anastasia Turchetta, RDH, revisited the article with DiGangi and asked for some of her thoughts on why it was a topic that drew so many responses.

“We were trying to get across that there are some things you have to think about differently and the ways that you can do that,” DiGangi said. “There is a feeling out there that sacred cows sometimes can’t be challenged. I don’t understand that. Everything should be challenged and examined and I think it’s important for our profession to do that.”

DiGangi also talked about why she and Gutkowski began the Modern Millennial Hygienist series for Modern Hygienist.

“It all boils down to a state of mind,” DiGangi explained. “It’s like the old saying goes, ‘How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.’ That’s important to us and to the dental hygiene profession … we have to see where we can change things and how we can do it. Ultimately, it’s about what is best for our patients and that’s the thing we have to all keep as the goal at the end of the day.”

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You can hear more of Turchetta and DiGangi discussing the controversial article, the future of Modern Millennial Hygienists, and more in the latest edition of Straight Talk below.