Drs. Armanini, Kolodychak, and Basile, who practice Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in Millcreek Township, specialize in wisdom teeth removal, dental implants and anesthesia. While those sub-specialties make up a large part of the job description, the doctors believe that the care given before, during and after procedures is just as important. “As a practice, we try to go above and beyond. It's about care and empathy,” Dr. Kolodychak says. “We know that many people grow up fearing the dentist. Our job is to take out a tooth, remove wisdom teeth or do an implant; but what's most important is that a patient walks away from every procedure with a positive experience.”

“Dental implants are the future of dentistry because of their success rate,” says Dr. Kolodychak. “After 10 years, implants still have a success rate of over 97%. If cared for properly, they can last throughout the patient's lifetime.

“We provide the surgical side of a patient's overall dental care, and work hand-in-hand with our referring colleagues”, Dr. Armanini adds. The doctors are licensed to provide anesthesia during surgery. “We received a great deal of anesthesia training, to be certified as oral surgeons; and we have to maintain several certifications to continue to provide optimal anesthetic care to our patients.”

The longtime staff members at Armanini & Kolodychak are known for their efficiency, creating shorter wait times for patients. “When a prospective patient contacts us for an appointment, we request that they visit our website, erieoralsurgery.com. We ask them to complete and submit to us a patient information form. With this information, we create the patient's chart in advance of their appointment. When the patient arrives, we can then focus entirely on their oral surgical needs. This procedure has been well-received by our patients and has helped us become a much more efficient practice”, says Karen Feikls, Practice Manager.

“We are attentive to the needs and concerns of our patients,” says Dr. Armanini. Making a good first impression is crucial, and the doctors believe it's an important part of providing great care. Dr. Basile says “With the specialty type of practice that we have, we may be able to accomplish a patient's goals in a single visit. With this in mind, we try to make every appointment as comfortable and beneficial as possible so that if a patient needs our services in the future, they know that they will receive great care in a comfortable and pleasant manner.”

The doctors regularly receive thank you notes from patients, “and we appreciate every one of them,” says Dr. Armanini. “These notes often mention a staff member by name. They let us know that we are doing our job; addressing patients' needs with personal care and sensitivity.”

The future of the practice is bright, with Dr. Basile (arriving in July of 2009), coming on as the third partner. “I've been so happy working in this field and, specifically, in this practice,” says Dr. Basile. “We all love working in Erie,” adds Dr. Kolodychak. “It provides everything we could have asked for. We're excited about the future of the practice, and we are committed to the future of oral surgery in Erie.”

J. D. Basile had every intention of going to medical school, but after a “fortunate” accident, his decision had changed. “I was playing a pickup football game with some friends when I sustained a fracture. The oral surgeon who performed my surgery offered me the opportunity to shadow him which eventually led to a full-time position in his practice. After seeing the broad scope of oral surgery and truly enjoying the surgeries that we were performing, I decided to change my focus and pursue oral surgery as a profession.”

Tim Armanini first decided he wanted to be a dentist when he was a student at Cathedral Prep. But after dental school, he couldn't settle on a specialty. “I knew I could get more experience by completing a general practice residency, where I would move through different specialties with each rotation,” Dr. Armanini says. His first rotation just happened to be in oral surgery, and “that's where I fell in love with it,” he says. “Oral surgery seems for me, to be a very rewarding specialty. There is plenty of action; it's demanding and challenging.”

Michael Kolodychak was trying to decide between medicine and dentistry during his undergraduate years at Gannon and during his grad school years at Pitt. “I like the artistic side of dentistry, so I applied to dental school,” he says. Early on, Dr. Kolodychak rounded with the oral surgery residents, where he got a chance to learn and see the scope of the specialty. “I perceived it to be the hardest residency to get into, but also the most satisfying aspect of dentistry for me. I like the challenge of hard, complex cases that require both an artistic side and a scientific side.”