Hygiene Spotlight: The Perico Group

In a practice that specializes in periodontics and implants, dental hygienists are working with much more than periodontal probes and titanium scalers. The Perico Group has expanded the scope of its dental hygienists beyond nonsurgical therapies to include surgical dental assistance. With a history of excellence and innovation since Dr. Gerald Kramer founded it in 1966, this practice now numbers four locations in Massachusetts: Swampscott, Reading, Chestnut Hill, and Boston. "Being both a dental hygienist and surgical assistant has allowed me to perform expanded duties such as root planing and curettage during osseous surgery, assisting in dental implant placement, tissue graft and all surgical procedures, and providing local anesthesia," says Tracy O'Keefe, RDH, a Perico dental hygienist. "Having the additional training to administer local anesthetic allows us to free the doctor to spend more time being with patients and performing surgery."