Registered dental hygienists (RDHs) are a lisenced health professional, who prevent and treat some oral diseases, promote the prevention of dental care, and provide education to the patients. In clinical point of view, the RDHs perform health care assessments, such as reviewing medical/dental health histories, measuring vital signs, taking radiographs, examining dental caries/chart and periodontal chart, removing plaque biofilm and calculus, prophylaxis, and fluoride treatment. Moreover, the RDH also educates the patients the proper techniques of brushing and flossing to maintain oral health.Another important issue is to counsel the patients the healthy nutrition for protecting the oral health.
In order to fulfill the responsibilities of the role as a RDH, I must accomplish a special academic program. The program include subject of Law and Ethics by applying a professional code of ethics in all
…show more content…
I should understand the federal/state legal and regulatory framework in the provision of dental hygiene services; I joined a small group of four students to study Michigan laws, which was compared with California laws . I studied how to apply critical thinking and prolem-solving skills in the provision of dental hygiene care to promote whole patient health and wellness by wirting papers of the trigeminal nerve, the cysts in oral pathology studying, the hypertension in pharmacology studying, drug charting project with many type of drugs; and playing a role in a dental emergencies skill kit with the other two of my classmates. I assumed professional responsibility for the provision of dental hygiene care centered on the current evidence-based, scientifically accepted standard of care by writing papers of literrature review with the topic of The Effect of Driniking Alkaline Water in Preventing Caries together with CLinical Content Analysis (Gold vs. Fool's Gold), researching The Effect of
A dental hygienist is a very important role in any dental office. As stated by a dental assistant, “Dental hygienists work closely with the dentist as well as hands on with the patients. They assist dentists with operative procedures such as fillings and extractions, and making molds of patients teeth” (Wilson, Jennifer). A large part of their job is teaching patients proper dental care to ensure a lifetime of healthy teeth. This includes proper brushing and flossing techniques. According to the job out look, a day as a dental hygienist can include taking x-rays, cleaning and scaling teeth, charting treatment plans, putting sealants on teeth, taking impressions of teeth and completing information about the patient’s oral and medical history (Summary). In some states dental hygienist are allowed to give local anesthetic and place and remove sutures (Delivering Local Anesthetic). According to advantages of becoming a dental hygienist, hygienists spend more hands on time with the patients than the dentist does. These are some of the instruments that dental hygienists use on a daily basis: toothbrush, scaler, mirror, ultrasonic scaler, explorer, suction, computer, salvia ejector, rubber cap polisher, dental models, x-ray machine and probe. The dental hygienist uses a toothbrush to remove soft plaque from the teeth. Plaque is a soft coating on the teeth that contain bacteria. The bacteria can cause tooth decay and gum disease. The amount of plaque on the teeth gives the hygienist an idea of how well the daily brushing and flossing of the patient’s teeth are completed on a regular basis. The scaler is used to remove hardened plaque or calculus from the teeth. The mirror is used to look closely at the surfaces of the teeth a...
For those that have bad habits with cigarettes, Tobacco Cessation Counseling is available. Cigarettes cause tooth loss, rotting, and surface stains; hygienist make sure to pass this information to the patient and help them to understand that quitting is the best option if they want to keep their teeth. As said before, a hygienist informs the patient on what foods to avoid. Nutritional Counseling is provided if a hygienist believes there is danger with a patients teeth such as diseases. (Dental Hygiene Clinic) Any foods with high acidity is something a dental hygienist would recommend avoiding. For example, apples, hard candies, popcorn, diet sodas, and salad dressing. Enamel is the hardest structure in the human body. It’s even harder than bones. When the enamel is exposed to acid, it wears down and erodes. This is how tooth erosion and decay happens. They will educate the patient with what foods to replace the bad ones with. Although, a dentist is who performs the restorations, a hygienist can still inform what will happen. Because of the fact that hygienists usually see patients before the dentist, they will give feedback to the dentist and recommend restorations in the mouth. They specialize in providing clinical and educational services (Sealy Dental Center) so they are very useful to dentists. When a patient has missing, chipped, or sharpened teeth, a restoration is done to replace the originals. Some examples
According to the book, “Clinical Practice of the Dental Hygienist”, a dental hygienist is a dental health specialist whose primary concern is the maintenance of oral health and the prevention of oral disease. A career as a dental hygienist provides a wide range of challenges where in the dentist office, the dental hygienist and dentist work together to meet the oral health needs of their patients. There are many things that dental hygienists do that you may not realize when you think you are just going in to get your teeth cleaned.
Ongoing research linking oral health and general health will continue to spur the demand for preventative dental services, which dental hygienists often provide. New and increasingly accurate technologies to help diagnose oral health problems are also expected to increase demand. Example: new tests use saliva samples that a hygienist takes to spot early signs of oral cancer. As their practices expand, dentists will hire more hygienists to perform routine dental care, allowing the dentist to see more patients
As a future dental hygienist, I want to be able to help educate people about dental hygiene, prevent cancers and help rural communities overcome oral diseases and cancers. Dental Hygienist usually work in dentist office's, some of the responsibilities of a dental hygienist are removing tarter, stains and plaque from teeth, they take dental x-rays and access patient oral health and report findings to the dentist.
The duties of a dental hygienist can be stressful, they begin by preparing the treatment room for the patient by protocols. Then, they prepare the patient for the dental work by seating the patient and discussing any questions or concerns the patient has for visiting that day. The hygienist then proceeds to sterlizing, sharpening, and arranging the instruments depending on what is needed due to the patient's oral health. The hygienist then detects any diseases by using an oral cancer screening, visually and physically examinging the gums, then uses probesto locate periodontal diseases.This job requires a quality understanding of the body due to the diseases carried ...
Cortell (2008) lists the following responsibilities that all dental hygienists must maintain in order to practice. First and most important professional obligation is to maintain licenses and appropriate certification to be able to practice legally. The second is to demonstrate comprehension of and follow the American Dental Hygienists’ Association Code of Ethics that ensures ethical patient care. The third professional responsibility is to maintain ADHA membership and support the profession. Fourth responsibility following the changes in health and dental hygiene profession that may affect dental hygiene care. One good example to this was a change in certain health conditions that does not require pre-medications by the American Heart Association for dental procedures. The fifth responsibility is that dental hygienists must participate in activities that maintain continued competence. Being committed to life-long learning to remain competent is the sixth responsibility of the dental
A dental hygienist is a licensed dental professional who is registered with a dental association or regulatory body within their country of practice. They are a primary healthcare professional who works independent of, or alongside dentists and other dental professionals in a team to provide full oral health care. They have the training and education that focus and specialize in the prevention and treatment of oral disease. They can choose to work in a range of dental settings from independent practice, private practice, specialists practices to public sector; and can also work in residential aged care facilities.
Dental hygienists are licensed oral health professionals who focus on preventing and treating oral diseases that both protect teeth and gums, and also to protect patients' total health. They are graduates of accredited dental hygiene education programs in colleges and universities, and must take a written national board examination and a clinical
When you are a dental hygienist you must be understanding and patient with someone with bad history of dentistry. Hygienist should make the patient feel comfortable and safe. I will always be uderstanding and patient with all patients. I will treat my patients with care and compassion, by listening and resolving problems the patient my have.A dental hygienist must also be passionate about oral health and educating others about it. They must be their patients role model. Another great trait of a detan hygienist is having a positive attitude. Being positive can give off an energetic and friendly feeling that can help the patient to relax and enjoy their visit at the dentist. As a hygienist, one must be detail-orientated. Especially, since the most of the occupation is in one general area, the oral cavity. It is with great need for dental hygienist watch closely at every thing they encounter while doing routine check ups on the patient. Informing the Dentist about anything out of the normal could be critical, like sensitivity. Catching little unnormal things, like dark or weak spots, earlier could keep that patient from severe
Dental Hygienist are commonly found in clinical settings. In this setting their main objective is to control
If a dental hygienist is not dependable and does not show up to work she impacts the whole clinic. Patients would have to be rescheduled and it would also impact the office because it would decrease their earnings for the day that is why it is very important that a dental hygienist is dependable. Dental hygienist should also always be on time to work to be able to setup their operatory so that they can see their patients on time. A dental hygienist should also be respectful to her coworkers and her patients because as professionals we need to treat everyone with respect. A professional dental hygienist should also take the time to research different cultures and ages so that they are able to communicate well with their patients. They should also research different preventative methods for their patients. They should have different preventative methods that will fit the different needs of every patient. A dental hygienist also has to always take in consideration what is the best option for every patient, for example if they have a patient that has not had a cleaning in a couple of years they should be able to determine if that patient needs a full mouth debridement, quad scaling or just a prophy based on that patient’s
Even though there are many jobs in the dental field, I am going to write about dental hygiene in hopes to figure out what a dental hygienist is, what they do on a daily basis, and the steps I should take to make it my career. A dental hygienist, in a lot of patient’s eyes is the person they talk to the most, they connect with, and the majority of the time, is the one who is poking around in their mouths. This chatty person is the one who cleans the nasty gunk off of their teeth and constantly tells them to floss, even though they know he/she is not going to. This job seems like a piece of cake, like all they do is talk about their family, and scrape teeth. In reality, they are highly trained and licensed professionals, working
Introduction: In Canada, general dental health is not part Canada’s national system of health insurance (Medicare) (1) except for some dental surgical procedures that are performed at hospitals. Since Oral health does not come under the Health Act about ninety-five percent of the oral health care services are offered on a fee-for-service basis. Oral health care is under provincial or territorial jurisdiction like other health care services and publically financed dental care programs provide the remaining five percent of oral health care services (2). Thus, majority of Canadians receive oral health via privately owned dental clinics. Privately owned dental care gives these services providers control over dental service charges, types of available treatment for the patients and number of follow-up appointment for treatments or routine care. Service users pay for the dental expenses from their own pockets or utilize insurance coverage (1).
Dental hygiene is a dynamic and challenging career that offers team work, personal growth, and extraordinary benefits, and it is the perfect career for me. As a health care professional, the dental hygienist is an important member of the dental team providing patient care. Good qualities for a dental hygienist are compassion and enjoying talking to people which are two qualities that fit my personality. I love the thought of knowing I made a positive impact in a person's health. Becoming a dental hygienist professionally requires you to obtain an associate degree in dental hygiene. They affect the average American by educating them about dental care. A dentist helps people with their dental health, which can greatly impact a person’s day-to-day life.