Dental Hygienist – Whispering Sweet Nothings To Your Molars

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep podcast,

Where I bore you to sleep with my soothing voice,

One fact at a time.

I'm your host,

Benjamin Boster.

Today's episode,

Sponsored by Katie Doty,

Is about dental hygienists and oral hygiene.

Thank you,

Katie,

For sponsoring the episode.

Now,

Before we begin,

This is actually the third time recording this episode due to some audio issues with my microphone,

So I'm hoping that I get it right and that it does the job to help you to sleep tonight.

If you like these kind of topics,

Let me know in the comments,

And feel free to follow the show so you never miss an episode.

Now let's get settled in and let's talk about dental hygiene.

A dental hygienist or oral hygienist is a licensed dental professional registered with a dental association or regulatory body within their country of practice.

Prior to completing clinical and written board examinations,

Registered dental hygienists must have either an associate's or bachelor's degree in dental hygiene from an accredited college or university.

Once registered,

Hygienists are primary health care professionals who work independently of or alongside dentists and other dental professionals to provide full oral health care.

They have the training and education that focuses on and specializes in the prevention and treatment of many oral diseases.

Dental hygienists have a specific scope of clinical procedures they provide to their patients.

They assess a patient's condition in order to offer patient-specific preventative and educational services to promote and maintain good oral health.

A major role of a dental hygienist is to perform periodontal therapy,

Which includes things such as periodontal charting,

Periodontal debridement,

Which is scaling and root planing,

Prophylaxis,

Preventing disease,

Or periodontal maintenance procedures for patients with periodontal disease.

The use of therapeutic methods assists their patients in controlling oral disease while providing tailored treatment plans that emphasize the importance of behavioral changes.

Some dental hygienists are licensed to administer local anesthesia and perform dental radiography.

Dental hygienists are also the primary resource for oral cancer screening and prevention.

In addition to these procedures,

Hygienists may take intraoral radiographs,

Apply dental sealants,

Administer topical fluoride,

And provide patient-specific oral hygiene instruction.

Dental hygienists work in a range of dental settings,

From independent,

Private,

Or specialist practices to the public sector.

They work together with dentists,

Dental therapists,

Oral health therapists,

As well as other dental professionals.

Dental hygienists aim to work interprofessionally to provide holistic oral health care in the best interest of their patient.

They also offer expertise in their field and can provide a dental hygiene diagnosis,

Which is an integral component of the comprehensive dental diagnosis.

Here's their job description and duties.

In the dental office,

The dentist and the dental hygienist work together to meet the oral health needs of patients.

Since each country has its own specific regulations regarding their responsibilities,

The range of services performed by hygienists varies.

Some of the services provided by dental hygienists may include patient screening procedures,

Such as assessment of oral health conditions,

Review of the health history,

Oral cancer screening,

Head and neck inspection,

Dental charting,

And taking blood pressure and pulse.

Taking and developing dental radiographs or x-rays.

Removing calculus and plaque,

Which is the hard and soft deposits,

From all surfaces of the teeth.

Applying preventative materials to the teeth,

E.

G.

Sealants and fluorides.

Teaching patients appropriate oral hygiene strategies to maintain oral health.

Counseling patients about good nutrition and its impact on oral health.

Making impressions of patients' teeth for study casts,

Or models of teeth used by dentists to evaluate patient treatment needs.

And performing documentation and office management activities.

Here are dental hygienists' salaries.

Jobs for dental are well-paid almost on all states of the United States.

The median annual wage for dental hygienists was $77,

810 in May 2021.

The median annual wages for dental hygienists in the top industries in which they worked were as follows.

Offices of dentists,

$77,

810.

Offices of physicians,

$77,

290.

Government,

$64,

110.

States with the highest employment level in dental hygienists.

California was an hourly wage of $52.

02.

And an annual mean wage of $108,

200.

Texas was an hourly mean wage of $36.

53.

And an annual mean wage of $75,

970.

Florida was an hourly mean wage of $35.

18.

And an annual mean wage of $73,

180.

New York was an hourly mean wage of $40.

19.

And an annual mean wage of $83,

600.

Pennsylvania was an hourly mean wage of $34.

48.

And an annual mean wage of $71,

710.

Top paying states for dental hygienists.

Alaska,

Hourly mean wage $55.

53.

Was an annual mean wage of $115,

510.

California was an hourly mean wage of $52.

02.

And an annual mean wage of $108,

200.

Washington was an hourly mean wage of $51.

06.

And an annual mean wage of $106,

200.

Oregon was an hourly mean wage of $45.

40.

And an annual mean wage of $94,

420.

And Nevada at $43.

01 for their hourly mean wage.

And an annual mean wage of $89,

460.

Let's talk about periodontal treatment.

Gum disease is caused by a sticky film of bacteria called plaque.

Plaque is always forming on teeth.

But if it is not cleaned well,

The bacteria and plaque can cause gums to become inflamed.

When this happens,

The gums pull away from the teeth and form spaces called pockets.

Plaque then gets trapped in these pockets and cannot be removed with regular brushing.

Untreated gum disease can lead to bone and tooth loss.

If the periodontal pockets are too deep,

A deep cleaning,

Which is called scaling and root planing,

Is necessary to remove the plaque in these pockets.

Scaling and root planing is the careful cleaning of the root surfaces to remove plaque and calculus from deep periodontal pockets and to smooth the tooth root to remove bacterial toxins.

Scaling and root planing is sometimes followed by adjunctive therapy such as local delivery antimicrobials,

Systemic antibiotics,

And host modulation as needed on a case by case basis.

Most periodontists agree that after scaling and root planing,

Many patients do not require any further active treatment.

However,

The majority of patients will require ongoing maintenance therapy to sustain health.

The maintenance phase involves continuous care at patient-specific levels.

1906 Alfred Fones trained his chair-side assistant and his cousin,

Irene M.

Newman,

To clean teeth and perform other preventative treatments on children,

Making her the world's first dental hygienist.

1913 Alfred Fones began the first school for dental hygienists in Connecticut.

1915 Connecticut amended its Dental Practice Act to include the regulation of dental hygienists.

1917 Irene M.

Newman received the world's first license as a dental hygienist in Connecticut.

1923 The first meeting of the American Dental Hygienists Association took place.

1950 The University of Toronto established the first dental hygiene program in Canada.

1959 Esther May Wilkins,

An American dental hygienist and dentist,

Authored the first comprehensive book on dental hygiene,

Clinical Practice of the Dental Hygienist,

First edition of which was published in 1959.

1964 The American Dental Hygienists Association deleted the word female from its constitution and bylaws.

1965 Jack Orio graduated from the University of New Mexico,

Making him the world's first male dental hygienist.

1974 Dental hygienists were first trained in New Zealand in 1974 for use in the New Zealand Defense Force.

The one-year course was taught by the Royal New Zealand Dental Corps at the Burnham Army Base outside Christchurch.

1975 The dental hygiene profession was introduced in Australia.

1993 The New Zealand Dental Hygienists Association was founded.

1994 The first independent non-military training for dental hygienists in New Zealand began in 1994.

Training Australia Dental hygienists in Australia must be graduates from a dental hygiene program with either an Advanced Diploma,

TAFE,

Associate Degree,

Or more commonly,

A Bachelor's Degree from a dental hygiene school that is accredited by the Australian Dental Council,

ADC,

Under the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency.

In Australia,

It is a legal requirement for dental hygienists and oral health therapists graduates to be registered with the Dental Board of Australia before practicing their scope and periodontology in any state or territory in Australia.

The Dental Hygienists Association of Australia,

DHAA Inc.

,

Established in 1975,

Is the peak body representing registered dental hygiene service providers in Australia.

A dental hygienist does not need to be employed by a dentist but can independently assess patients and make treatment plans within their scope of practice whilst working in the community.

Practicing as an autonomous decision-maker and working within the scope of only what they are formally trained in,

The national law requires the same level of professional responsibility from dental hygienists,

Oral health therapists,

And dental therapists as it does from dentists,

Dental specialists,

And dental prosthetists,

In that all practitioners must have their own professional indemnity insurance and radiation licenses.

They are also required to complete 60 hours of mandatory continuing professional development in a three-year cycle.

A Bachelor of Oral Health is the most common degree program.

Students entering a bachelor's degree program are required to have a high school diploma or equivalent.

Most Bachelor of Oral Health programs now qualify students as both dental hygienists and dental therapists,

Collectively known as oral health therapists.

Canada.

Dental hygienists in Canada must have completed a diploma program which can take from 19 months to three years to complete.

All dental hygiene students must pass a NDHCB examination after graduation.

This examination is offered three times per year,

January,

May,

And September.

Three universities in Canada offer Bachelor of Science degrees in dental hygiene.

Dalsey University,

University of Alberta,

University of British Columbia.

Dental hygiene across Canada is a well-respected regulated healthcare profession with many opportunities.

These possibilities include working in clinical,

Administration,

Education,

Research,

And public health positions.

The wages vary throughout the country from approximately $40 per hour in some areas to as high as $65 per hour in others.

A surplus of new dental hygiene graduates in recent years has resulted in a decrease in wages in some regions.

Some of the downfalls to practicing in different provinces are the different regulations.

For instance,

In British Columbia,

The hygienist cannot provide treatment without the patient receiving a dental exam in the previous 365 days unless the practicing hygienist has an extended duty module or resident care module.

In Alberta,

British Columbia,

Manitoba,

Nova Scotia,

And Saskatchewan,

Hygienists also administer local anesthesia if qualified to do so.

In Ontario,

Dental hygienists may take further training to become a restorative dental hygienist.

University-based programs incorporate restorative dentistry in the clinical portion of their programs.

Graduates of these programs are immediately prepared for a broader scope of practice when they graduate.

Registered dental hygienists must register every year by December 31.

All Canadian dental hygienists must also prove continuing competence by maintaining a professional portfolio yearly.

In all provinces,

Dental hygienists are registered with their provincial college of dental hygienists.

Dental hygienists in British Columbia,

Ontario,

Nova Scotia,

And Alberta are able to open their own private clinics and practice without a dentist on staff.

New Zealand.

Dental hygienists are no longer trained in New Zealand.

Instead,

Training has been combined with that of dental therapists to train oral health therapists.

Dental hygienists were first domestically trained in 1974 for use in the New Zealand Defence Force.

The one-year course was taught by the Royal New Zealand Dental Corps at the Burnham Army Base outside Christchurch.

Hygiene training was briefly offered at the Wellington School for Dental Nurses in 1990 as a two-week supplement to dental therapy students training.

However,

This was quickly discontinued.

The first independent non-military training began in 1994.

Otago Polytechnic began offering a 15-month certificate in dental hygiene in Dunedin.

In 1998,

The program was modified to be a two-year diploma.

Otago Polytechnic stopped offering the course in 2000.

The following year,

University of Otago began offering a two-year diploma in dental hygiene qualification.

In 2002,

The university added a three-year Bachelor of Health Sciences Endorsed in Dental Hygiene degree alongside the diploma.

From 2006,

New Zealand dental hygienists and now oral health therapists have been trained at either University of Otago in Dunedin at the country's only dental school,

Or at Auckland University of Technology.

Until official establishment of the oral health therapy scope in late 2017,

The qualifications Bachelor of Oral Health at Otago,

Bachelor of Health Science,

Oral Health at AUT enabled graduates to register and practice as both a dental hygienist and a dental therapist.

In order to practice,

Dental hygienists and oral health therapists must register and annually recertify with the Dental Council of New Zealand.

One dental hygienist is represented on council for a three-year term.

The representing body for dental hygienists was the New Zealand Dental Hygienists Association.

The association was founded in 1993 and is affiliated with the International Federation of Dental Hygienists.

In 2021,

The association merged with the New Zealand Dental and Oral Health Therapists Association to become the New Zealand Oral Health Association.

United States Dental hygienists in the United States must be graduates from a dental hygiene program with either an associate degree,

Most common,

A certificate,

A bachelor's degree,

Or master's degree from a dental hygienist school that is accredited by the American Dental Association,

Or ADA.

All dental hygienists in the United States must be licensed by the state in which they practice after completing a minimum of two years of school and passing a written board known as the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination,

As well as a clinical board exam.

After completing these exams and licenses,

Dental hygienists may use RDH after their names to signify that they are a registered dental hygienist.

Dental hygienists also have to become licensed in the state in which they intend to practice.

State licensure requirements vary.

However,

Most states require an associate degree in dental hygiene,

Successful completion of a state licensure examination,

As well as a clinical examination,

Also typically administered by the state.

Dental hygienist school programs usually require both general education courses and courses specific to the field of dental hygiene.

General education courses important to dental hygiene degrees include college-level algebra,

Biology,

And chemistry.

Courses specific to dental hygiene may include anatomy,

Oral anatomy,

Materials science,

Pharmacology,

Radiography,

Periodontology,

Nutrition,

And clinical skills.

A Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene is typically a four-year program.

Students entering a bachelor's degree program are required to have a high school diploma or equivalent,

But many dental hygienists with an associate degree or certification enter the bachelor's degree programs to expand their clinical expertise and help advance their careers.

Graduate degrees in the field of dental hygiene are typically two-year programs and are completed after the bachelor's degree.

Common graduate courses in dental hygiene include health care management,

Lab instruction,

And clinical instruction.

In addition,

The American Dental Hygienists Association has defined a more advanced level of dental hygiene.

The advanced dental hygiene practitioner,

Otherwise known as a dental therapist.

Dental hygienist students perform practical oral examinations free of charge at some institutions which have expressed a shortage in recent years.

The dental hygienists in some parts of North America can provide oral hygiene treatment based on the assessment of a patient's needs without the authorization of a dentist,

Treat the patient in absence of a dentist,

And also maintain a provider-patient relationship.

Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one's oral cavity clean and free of disease and other problems,

Like bad breath,

By regular brushing of the teeth,

Which is dental hygiene,

And adopting good hygiene habits.

It is important that oral hygiene be carried out on a regular basis to enable prevention of dental disease and bad breath.

The most common types of dental disease are tooth decay,

Cavities,

Dental caries,

And gum diseases,

Including gingivitis and periodontitis.

General guidelines for adults suggest brushing at least twice a day with a fluoridated toothpaste.

Brushing before going to sleep at night and after breakfast in the morning.

Cleaning between the teeth is called interdental cleaning and is as important as toothbrushing.

This is because a toothbrush cannot reach between the teeth and therefore only removes about 50% of plaque from the surface of the teeth.

There are many tools available for interdental cleaning,

Which include floss,

Tape,

And interdental brushes.

It's up to each individual to choose which tool they prefer to use.

Sometimes wide or straight teeth are associated with oral hygiene.

However,

A hygienic mouth can have stained teeth or crooked teeth.

To improve the appearance of their teeth,

People may use tooth whitening treatments and orthodontics.

The importance of the role of the oral microbiome in dental health has been increasingly recognized Data from human oral microbiology research shows that a commensal microflora can switch to an opportunistic pathogenic flora through complex changes in their environment.

These changes are driven by the host rather than the bacteria.

Archaeological evidence of calcified dental plaque shows marked shifts in the oral microbiome towards a disease-associated microbiome with cariogenic bacteria becoming dominant during the industrial revolution.

Streptococcus mutans is the most important bacteria in causing caries.

Modern oral microbiota are significantly less diverse than historic populations.

Caries,

Or cavities,

For example,

Have become a major endemic disease,

Affecting 60 to 90 percent of schoolchildren in industrialized countries.

In contrast,

Dental caries and periodontal diseases were rare in the pre-Neolithic era and in early hominins.

Tooth decay is the most common global disease.

Over 80 percent of cavities occur inside fissures in teeth where brushing cannot reach food left trapped after eating,

And saliva and fluoride have no access to neutralized acid and remineralize demineralized teeth,

Unlike easy-to-clean parts of the tooth where fewer cavities occur.

Teeth cleaning is the removal of dental plaque and tartar from teeth to prevent cavities,

Gingivitis,

Gum disease,

And tooth decay.

Severe gum disease causes at least one-third of adult tooth loss.

I hope you have an appointment scheduled with your dentist after listening to this.

Since before recorded history,

A variety of oral hygiene measures have been used for teeth cleaning.

This has been verified by various excavations done throughout the world,

In which chew sticks,

Tree twigs,

Bird feathers,

Animal bones,

And porcupine quills have been found.

In historic times,

Different forms of tooth cleaning tools have been used.

Indian medicine,

Ayurveda,

Has used the neem tree,

Or dadan,

And its products to create teeth cleaning twigs and similar products.

A person chews one end of the neem twig until it somewhat resembles the bristles of a toothbrush and then uses it to brush the teeth.

In the Muslim world,

The miswak,

Or siwak,

Made from a twig or root,

Has antiseptic properties and has been widely used since the Islamic Golden Age.

Rubbing baking soda or chalk against the teeth was also common.

However,

This can increase gum and tooth sensitivity.

Between cleanings by a dental hygienist,

Good oral hygiene is essential to preventing tartar buildup,

Which causes the problems mentioned above.

This is done through careful,

Frequent brushing with a toothbrush combined with the use of dental floss or interdental brushes to prevent accumulation of plaque on the teeth.

Powered toothbrushes reduce dental plaque and gingivitis more than manual toothbrushing in both short and long term.

Further evidence is needed to determine the clinical importance of these findings.

Patients need to be aware of the importance of brushing and flossing their teeth daily.

New parents need to be educated to promote healthy habits in their children.