Feb 15, 2022
Dentistry and medicine go together! After over 30 years seeing patients and impacting lives as a dental hygienist, Cheryl Shafer has changed her professional path and is now a Certified Orofacial Myologist focusing on airway, breathing, and tongue function. In this candid conversation, Cheryl addresses her burnout as a hygienist and thoughts for how we should measure the worth of our hygienists, discusses new services we should include in regular exams, and wants us all to remain focused on “The mission that we have is the health and welfare of our patients.”
As practice owners and healthcare providers, our roles continue to evolve regarding what we should be doing for our patients. Cheryl believes that dental offices should be viewed as any other medical specialists treating patients; a dentist is a member of an individual’s medical team. So, it is critical that the care that can and should be given in dental visits is well known. Some of these issues include sleep screening, how people are breathing, if they have sleep apnea, or if they have tongue ties. Cheryl shares her story of ultimately stepping away from being a hygienist and becoming a Myofunctional Therapist focusing on tongues and the impact that tongue issues can have on patients’ overall health. Cheryl recounts a story of how she saved a patient’s life, and says, “We need to value what we do and how we change lives.” Listen to this episode to hear some great ways you can measure the worth of your hygienists and provide higher levels of care for your patients!
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~ Laura