Our Team

Mercedes Chao

The one trait that describes Mercedes best, is emotional intelligence and from that derives her full commitment to patients and the practice for the last 13 years.

Customer service is understood by her as a life style more than a title and that’s why she always welcomes everyone with a broad smile. She has turned her role from a job to a hobby and enjoys every minute of it.

When not here at her second home, she’s at her first one, spending quality time with her boys and husband of many years, Bill.

Ping Mei

Ping Mei has been assisting Dr. Coughlin for more than 15 years. Every day she is eager to come to work because she is passionate about her job. Assisting has allowed her to gain valuable knowledge and skills to provide high quality care to all of our dental patients. Calm, collected, and soft spoken, Ping really knows how to bring serenity to the treatment room, and makes the doctor’s performance very smooth.

Ping loves traveling and outdoor activities including biking, hiking and ice skating.

Diana Caban

Diana has been our dental assistant for more than 9 years and works in the treatment area assisting with cosmetic and restorative procedures and is the primary surgical assistant for the periodontist.

She ensures that our patients feel comfortable, before, during and after treatment to help every individual have a speedy and comfortable recovery.

In addition to her direct patient care, Diana is also very instrumental in assisting with practice management. This ensures a wonderful bridge of continuity for the patients and the practice.

In her free time, Diana loves being with her 3 children, and teaching her 6 grandchildren salsa and Spanish.

Olga Maggio

Olga is a 1999 graduate of NYU College of Dentistry as a registered dental Hygienist. She has worked with us for more than 20 years as an extremely valuable patient advocate. Her intuitive nature is shared with all of us as she consistently provides excellent comprehensive dental hygiene for our patient family.

Olga enjoys spending time with her immediate and extended family both here in NY and in Florida. Running and cross fit training are her personal delights along with travel.

Emily Del Cervo

Emily is a graduate of The New York City College of Technology with a degree in dental hygiene. She is passionate about helping patients achieve healthy, beautiful smiles through personalized care and thorough patient education. Known for her gentle approach, Emily prioritizes patient comfort and creates a welcoming environment where every visit feels stress-free and supportive.

Outside of the office, Emily is a professional singer who performs on weekends. She also enjoys traveling, theatre, working out, and cooking new recipes. She looks forward to meeting you and partnering with you on your dental health journey!

Laurie Poyiatzis

Laurie Poyiatzis has been managing the business portion of the practice for over 15 years. While she remains remote, Laurie is very present in the mechanics of this continuously growing dental practice.

At home, Laurie enjoys the company of her husband and two young children and deeply loves having a variation of pets that goes from cats, dogs, chickens and a bunny.