Dental Hygienist

 

Career Profile
Dental hygienists remove soft and hard deposits from teeth, teach patients how to practice good oral hygiene, and provide other preventive dental care. Hygienists examine patients' teeth and gums, recording the presence of diseases or abnormalities. They remove calculus, stains, and plaque from teeth; perform root planing as a periodontal therapy; take and develop dental x rays; and apply cavity-preventive agents such as fluorides and pit and fissure sealants. Dental hygienists use hand and rotary instruments and ultrasonics to clean and polish teeth, x-ray machines to take dental pictures, syringes with needles to administer local anesthetics, and models of teeth to explain oral hygiene.

 

Job Outlook
Employment of dental hygienists is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations through 2012, in response to increasing demand for dental care and the greater utilization of hygienists to perform services previously performed by dentists. Dental hygienists is expected to be one of the fastest growing occupations through the year 2012.

 

Salary
According to the US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Handbook, the median hourly earning in 2002 was $26.59; benefits vary substantially with employment settings.

 

Dental Hygienist

 

Disqualifiers/Barriers

  • Must submit to a criminal background check
  • Must meet Immunization requirements

Important Skills

  • Dynamic personality
  • Should work well with others
  • Assertive but not aggressive
  • Good communication skills
  • Good sense of humor
  • Good people skills and initiative
  • Good attendance and timeliness
  • Flexible
  • High ethical and moral standards

 

Dental Hygienist

 

Educational Programs
Austin Community College

 

Certification
Dental hygienists must be licensed by the State in which they practice. To qualify for licensure, a candidate must graduate from an accredited dental hygiene school and pass both a written and clinical examination.

 

Length of Training/Requirements
Austin Community College offers the Associate of Applied Science Degree in Dental Hygiene. This is a two year program with 15 hours of prerequisite courses. It includes classroom instruction and clinical labs.

 

Location of Classes
Austin Community College accepted the first group of students into the new dental hygiene program with the opening of the new Health Sciences Building on the Eastview campus in the Fall of 2003.

 

Dental Hygienist

 

Castle Dental Centers -
10 Centers in Austin and Travis
Corporate Office
4534 Westgate Blvd.
Austin, Texas

 

Longhorn Dental -
9 Centers in Austin and Travis
Corporate Office
7517 Cameron Road #107
Austin, Texas

 

South Austin CHC
2529 South First Street
Austin, Texas

 

City of Austin Dental Clinics -
3 Clinics in Austin
Northeast Austin CHC
7112 Ed Bluestein #155
Austin, Texas

 

RBJ Bldg.
15 Waller Street
Austin, Texas

Note: The above information was taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and documentation received from Local Employers and Austin Community College.

 

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