Dental Hygiene

The American Dental Education Association (ADEA) defines the competencies required for entering the practice of dental hygiene. The four core competencies are health promotion/disease prevention, patient/client care, community involvement, and professional growth and development."3 The five-page ADEA document breaks down these core competencies into five domains. Each domain was then broken into numerous individual competencies. The domain directly associated with...

A common concern among patients during a dental hygiene appointment is the use of fluoride. Whether it is an applied topical fluoride application at the appointment or the use of fluoride toothpaste at home, some patients don’t prefer it. However, fluoride is recommended by the dental professional to reduce caries production and to promote remineralization of a compromised tooth...

Trust is the assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something.6 Trust can be fragile, much like glass. Once it is compromised or broken, it might be able to be repaired or patched, but it will never truly be the same again. It may also be damaged beyond repair. Statistics show that people trust each...

Practicing clinicians must understand the differences in the types of dental research and clinical relevance when reading and reviewing scientific literature. This awareness helps ensure dental professionals are providing the best possible care to patients and can assist in helping determine the best recommendations or tools to improve patients' oral health. Placing too much weight on a study that may...

Working as a clinical dental hygienist can lead to aches, stress, and occasional pain. It’s fairly common that a dental hygienist may encounter these discomforts throughout his or her career. Dental professionals are more susceptible to musculoskeletal disorders and often cope with these occupational hazards. Fortunately, there are many ways to relieve and prevent the aches and pains associated with...

Dental hygienists adore their patients and look forward to treating them every day. Here are 20 actions by dental patients, though, that are sure to test the benevolent patience of any dental hygienist. 1) Being habitually late We value your time as a patient and make that appointment specifically for you! I understand that sometimes things can't be helped, such as...

Being a dental hygienist is hard; demanding a lot from you physically, emotionally, and mentally. You sit for six to eight hours digging into gingival pockets and interdental areas, scaling all the calculus with remnants of last night’s dinner. It requires steady hands, sharp eyesight, and a not-so-faint heart. Mucous, saliva, and blood are our daily companions. Then there are...

Disclosure: This article is sponsored content from Heartland Dental as part of our sponsored partner program. Make sure to download your FREE dentist-hygienist partnership worksheet at the end of the article. From outside the dental industry, many may not understand the partnership between dentists and hygienists. To most, dental hygienists are the people who clean our teeth and nothing more. However,...

A former associate professor of dentistry at the University of Southern California was sentenced to six weeks in prison on November 10th for his role in the Operation Varsity Blues scandal, where wealthy parents participated in a scheme to enroll children at top universities. Dr. Homayoun Zadeh had entered a guilty plea last July. At his sentencing, he was also...

It's that time of year when patients and dental professionals are more vulnerable to getting sick from the seasonal flu or common cold. Many dental hygienists still go on with their day ─ even though they are not at their peak yet in recovery ─ and they do not feel bad enough to use a vacation day for being...