Influential Dental Hygienists You Should Know

The genesis of this article was to highlight the top 10 influential dental hygienists in 2020. To find out who these remarkable people are I naturally went to social media and queried “Who are the top 5 influential dental hygienists you should know?”

I wrote: “I am writing a blog about the top dental hygiene influencers in the field. I am finding plenty of dentists but not dental hygienists. Does anyone know who they are? Thanks!”

Within minutes I had over 50 responses. There were so many dental hygienists sharing who they thought were huge influencers in the field that I was astounded!

Intrigued, I began reading about each and every one of them. I realized that I couldn’t just write about the top 10 dental hygienists because, well…there are so many doing remarkable things.

I decided to write a series on dental hygienists who are making a difference in our world and who quite frankly, are inspirational warriors and leaders.

I begin the series with top 5 dental hygienists who are familiar to me, and who you should know. Let me introduce you…

 Anne Nugent Guignon, RDH, MPH

Anne has been internationally recognized for her numerous contributions to dental hygiene, education, and philanthropic endeavors. From an experience of her own professional pain, she began to speak up and deliver her message of hope through education, believing that everyone deserves to be happy, healthy, and thriving. It was incredibly disturbing to her that hygienists were experiencing emotional and physical pain in the workplace, and because of her dynamic energy and passionate message, hygienists all over the country and beyond have begun to embrace the ownership of their careers, finding health and happiness in a fulfilling profession. http://www.biomedicaltrainer.com/about-anne-guignon/

Trisha O’Hehir, RDH, BS

Trisha attended the University of Minnesota where she received degrees in Dental Hygiene and Higher Education. Four decades as a dental hygienist have included private practice in the United States and Zurich, Switzerland as well as faculty positions at the Universities of Minnesota, Washington, Arizona and Louisville.

She pioneered the position of Periodontal Therapist in Arizona and worked for several years teaching local anesthesia and providing local anesthesia in an oral surgery practice. In addition to extensive clinical practice experience, she is an instrument designer, international lecturer, and is also on the Board of Directors of AD World Health, a foundation dedicated to bringing healthcare to the underserved. https://www.ohehiruniversity.com/index.php/trisha-e-o-hehir-rdh-ms

Jane Weiner, RDH, BS

When Jane moved to Florida in 1979, she needed to retake her national boards to obtain her Florida dental hygiene license. To prepare for this she went back to hygiene school at Miami Dade Community College for nine months. When she finished and passed the boards, the college began sending her students — hygienists who were in similar situations — to help them prepare them for their boards. At first, Jane did this at no charge and worked from her own notes. But then as more students became interested, and another school wanted her to do this for their own students, she knew she couldn’t continue just out of her own home, and decided to make it a “real” professional course. https://www.janewrdh.com/index.html