Day in the Life of a Dental Hygienist

The life of a dental hygienist can involve a myriad of challenges. In dentistry, both the dental hygienist and the dentist work together for providing exceptional oral health care services and serving the requirements of the patients. Since each have their own set of duties, the work profile of a dental hygienist differs from that of a dentist.

Common services that are offered by dental hygienists include teaching patients about the importance of oral hygiene along with the various strategies that they can adapt to implement them, participating in screening procedures, like reviewing a patient’s oral health history, and assessing other conditions, by measuring pulse and blood pressure and completing dental charting.

Basically, a day in the life of dental hygienist begins within half-an-hour before the first appointment is scheduled. To provide an effective treatment, the dental hygienist reviews the medical history of the patient and then takes that data to the dentist. When done with the charting review the next duty of the hygienist is to prepare the treatment room.

In the treatment room they have to clean each and every essential instrument and prepare them for use. Some of them are polishing tools, sealants or fluorides that are important for cleaning the teeth and performing X-rays. They even have to take care of the safety equipment which includes gloves and aprons.

When the first patient of the day arrives, their chart is reviewed prior to their visit with the dentist. Now, it’s normal for the patient to be nervous before meeting the dentist and this is where the dental hygienist handles their anxiety in a calm and caring manner. It is common for some patients to be difficult to tackle, and this is where the competence of dental hygienist is put to the test.

Once the dental hygienist has reviewed the medical history, the patient meets the dentist for a brief examination, after that the dentist consults with the dental hygienist regarding the problems faced by the patient, where the conversation is based on the in-depth medical history of the patient. After that the next appointment is followed and the same sequence is carried out throughout the day.

How to Become a Dental Hygienist?

To become a dental hygienist you need to enroll into the dental hygienist program offered by reputable institutes and complete it in a successful manner. However, to get admitted into the top institutes in the country you need to satisfy the eligibility criteria and at the same time match up to their level of expectations.

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