Dental Hygienist Challenges

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Vivid, clear relationship between oral health and the overall health of the individuals make the importance of access to care more essential than ever before. Technological advancements in oral care facilitate communications and information sharing in a collaborative partnership. The success of oral hygiene education and preventive care in reducing the cost of care and increasing the oral health of the community make dental hygienists the frontiers of preventive care. There is always communication and collaboration between the dental hygienist and the dentist during patient care. A dental hygienist’s scientific knowledge, expertise, and the degree of competence in preventive care make him or her to be a perfect candidate to work independently. …show more content…
The introduction of unsupervised, independent practice of dental hygiene introduced new challenges and required revision of educational curriculum to prepare the hygienists for running an independent practice. Under the new health care system, the need for training advanced dental hygienists to fulfill the dental needs of the community especially the underserved and rural areas seems inevitable. Dental hygienists would face challenges on the way of becoming an integrated member of dental health care system such as: holding a special license to work independently, interdisciplinary collaboration, reimbursement from insurance companies, acceptance from the community, developing leadership skills, the knowledge of running a business and finally dealing with the cost of an independent …show more content…
Dealing with insurance companies can be a hassle. Based on the survey result, 61% of practicing EPDHs in Oregon believe reimbursement is an issue and half could never collect their money from the insurance company (Coplen & Bell, 2015). Hygienists working in a private practice do not need to deal and collect money from the insurance companies to get paid. Lack of knowledge about the insurances and in general about running a business effectively would affect the willingness of hygienists to work in alternative practices. Individuals would experience frustration, disappointment, and ultimately dissatisfaction if they cannot make a living out of their services. As much as serving the underserved populations is rewarding, the hygienists should be able to keep the business running, which it is impossible without getting reimbursed for the service. According to Vannah, et al., the IPDHs in Maine are responsible for additional training to succeed running an independent business while in California, the dental hygienists should complete 150 hours of training in business, management, caring for medically compromised patients and dental hygiene practice to obtain the license to practice in alternative settings (2014). Lack of skills and knowledge to run a business would affect the confidence of individuals in accomplishing the goal and
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