The dental hygienist is responsible for cleaning teeth and examining oral areas, head, and neck for signs of oral disease. They educate patients on oral hygiene, take and develop X-rays, or apply fluoride or sealants.
Responsibilities:
- The dental hygienist cleans calcareous deposits, accretions, and stains from teeth and beneath margins of gums, using dental instruments.
- They feel and visually examine gums for sores and signs of disease.
- They chart conditions of decay and disease for diagnosis and treatment by dentist.
- They apply fluorides and other cavity preventing agents to arrest dental decay.
- They examine gums, using probes, to locate periodontal recessed gums and signs of gum disease.
- They provide clinical services and health education to improve and maintain oral health of school children.
- They remove excess cement from coronal surfaces of teeth.
- They place, carve, and finish amalgam restorations.
- They administer local anesthetic agents.
- They conduct dental health clinics for community groups to augment services of dentist.
- They remove sutures and dressings.
- They place and remove rubber dams, matrices, and temporary restorations.
- They provide personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Skills:
- The dental hygienist must be able to use logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- They must be able to see details at close range.
- They must be able to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
- They must be able to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
Knowledge:
- The dental hygienist must have a bachelor or associate’s degree in dentistry or dental health with years of experience in the field.
- They should have knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities; including symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.