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Dental Hygienists – The Unsung Heroes of Dental Care
Posted by | Posted in Dental Health | Posted on 26-08-2010
When it comes to fighting and preventing gum disease, dental hygienists are not only your friends but they are the unsung heroes of dental care. They are able to handle one of the two major aspects of your dental care maintenance. They take care of your professional dental cleaning needs. They help to remove built up tartar that has accumulated. This tartar is calcified plaque – and it is under this tartar that anaerobic bacteria can run rampant.
Yet, even they will tell you that what you do at home is absolutely critical to your oral health. In fact, they should be the first to tell you that. However, the fact remains that we seem to be stuck in the dark ages when it comes to caring for our teeth at home. Brushing and flossing is enough for a some people to maintain their dental health. But the stats on the number of people with either periodontal disease or excessive caries or cavities is rather high.
Many believe that brushing and flossing are enough to stop dental disease. That’s simply not the case for everyone. It is very important to realize this. There are plenty of people with gum disease and plenty with tooth decay. Some of them actually brush and floss quite well.
In any case, next time that you get a chance to visit with your dental hygienist thank him or her for the excellent job they do. You have no idea how valuable they are to you. They have a tough job, they are trying to help but many people do not realize this and blame them instead. Thank them on your way out of the office, next time. They will appreciate that and you! Next: Follow the links below to learn what you can do to stop gum disease and prevent it from coming back.
Get your free report: How To Stop Gum Disease at : http://www.HowToSTopGumDisease.com
David Snape is the author of the book: What You Should Know about Gum Disease. ISBN: 978-0981485508 – Available online at most book retailer sites. It can also be ordered by most book stores.
Disclaimer: This article is for information and entertainment purposes only. It does not intend to render advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you have or think you might have gum disease or any other health problem, visit your periodontist or physician for advice, diagnosis and treatment. The USFDA has not evaluated statements about products in this article.
Watch the video related to dental hygienist
Short clip of our dental hygienist performing periodontal endoscopic debridement with micro ultrasonic instrumentation
Help answer the question about dental hygienist
What is the road to becoming a dental hygienist?I'm a male, senior year of high school and finding interest
in the field of dentistry.
I'm wondering to become a hygienist, do I need to become a dental assistant first prior to becoming a hygienist?
THERE ARE ALWAYS LOCAL DENTISTS ADVERTISING THAT THEY NEED A HYGIENIST TO WORK FOR THEM.
HYGIENE IS ABOUT 33% OF A DENTAL PRACTICE SO THERE IS ALWAYS A NEED FOR CAPABLE PERSONEL.
Depending on where you went to school, you can sometimes get advanced placement credit for your dental assisting education.
i found some additional info for you at http://www.bls.gov.
Hope it helps.
Education and training. A high school diploma and college entrance test scores are usually required for admission to a dental hygiene program. High school students interested in becoming a dental hygienist should take courses in biology, chemistry, and mathematics. Also, some dental hygiene programs require applicants to have completed at least 1 year of college. Specific entrance requirements vary from one school to another.
In 2006, there were 286 dental hygiene programs accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation. Most dental hygiene programs grant an associate degree, although some also offer a certificate, a bachelor’s degree, or a master’s degree. A minimum of an associate degree or certificate in dental hygiene is generally required for practice in a private dental office. A bachelor’s or master’s degree usually is required for research, teaching, or clinical practice in public or school health programs.
Schools offer laboratory, clinical, and classroom instruction in subjects such as anatomy, physiology, chemistry, microbiology, pharmacology, nutrition, radiography, histology (the study of tissue structure), periodontology (the study of gum diseases), pathology, dental materials, clinical dental hygiene, and social and behavioral sciences
Ha! Dental Hygienists dont look for cavities! Worst yet, not one mention of periodontal disease,gum health, or CALCULUS (not “plaque”)removal…um, scalers?! “Mr. Thirsty” and , I dont want to work that many hours. Lord you make us look bad. The field of DH is long, strenuous, demanding hours. Any lovelies out there wanting to have the letters RDH attached to your name, please DONT take this vid seriously!! Love my job..but its a bitch sometimes..and for GODS SAKE we do not diagnose disease!
haha cool. my boyfriends mom is a dental hygienist
I have experienced this in my hygiene career and sometimes it is a careless dentist (or other staff member) and sometimes it is an honest mistake. A couple of ways I have handled this are –
1. said nothing that would alert the patient and handed them a new pair of gloves prior to them getting into the mouth
2. asked them if I could speak to them for a minute outside the room and let them know
3. just made eye contact with the Dr. and pointed to the gloves on their hands to jog their memory
4. held out the box of gloves at them
(I have attempted to do all of these behind the patients head or at least out of the line of site, because who wants to be shown their wrong in front of the patient or staff)
If you think it is a ongoing problem and you feel that the dentist will get upset or be offended, you might opt to hold onto the mirror and explorer (so they can't do the exam) until you see they have changed their gloves and if they haven't, hand them gloves first and then the instruments.Or maybe leave a new set of gloves on top of the instruments on the tray so they can't get to the instruments without seeing them.
If this is a constant obvious problem and their are copious amounts of other "dirty" offenses you might see if you can make some positive changes in the practice or find a different practice to work in. Honestly, I graduated 15 years ago and alot has changed, so if the Dr. you are working for is older they may just not know about the newer protocols. There is an awful lot of new information to take in all the time, but basic cleanliness is an issue that cannot be compromised since some medically compromised patients could be severly affected….Not only are you able, but you must address the issue for everyone's safety. After all, if dirty gloves are going into a patient's mouth, what else are they touching the bathroom doorknob? (that you are going to end up touching with your bare hands?)
Good luck + hope that helps!
JAMRDH -a dental hygienist
its better if you are not too to get a hepatitis c shot, its for your safety.
It depends on the dentist you are going to work for.
hi,
check this out,
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos097.htm
http://www.texasdha.org/
http://www.tdhea.org/
http://www.twu.edu/dental-hygiene/
good luck,
Dental hygienest
They typically make $50 an hour and see 1 patient per hour.
Well every job has it's downsides, but dental hygiene is a great career. Bls.gov says that the employment growth is projected to be 30%, much faster than average. It is in demand and offers great pay, especially for an associate's degree. And yes they do get good benefits, just like any job, you have to search around and interview to find a job that offers benefits that are valuable to you. Here's a good link to lots of useful info on dental hygienists: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos097.htm