The Role Of Becoming A Dental Hygienist

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There are many similarities between the three websites. The most important part of working in the office is meeting the oral health needs of the patients. The main duty of the hygienist is to do the routinely check-ups, which include removing plaque. They also give them a better understanding of how to improve their oral hygiene. Education is an important part of becoming a dental hygienist. The most important subjects going into the program include: chemistry, math, biology, health, ect.. Hygienist commonly just get their Associates degree, which is then only two to three years of schooling. Depending on the school there could be a year of pre-requisites and the program, or just two years of the program. There is also the option of going to a University, which requires two additional years of school. If a bachelor’s degree is obtained, it is normally used for teaching or researching. In order to become a hygienist, the last step is to take the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination. There …show more content…

The number of new graduates has also increased, which means it is much more competitive. In 2014 there were 200,500 people employed as a dental hygienist. The median wage for 2015 was $72,330 per year. There is more to just the salary, other advantages are vacation days, bonuses, and insurance. More than half of the dental hygienists worked only part time. “Employment of dental hygienists is projected to grow 19 percent from 2014 to 2024, much faster than the average for all occupations.” (Bureau of Labor Statistics) Dental hygienists are ranked the fastest growing occupation. The demand will grow as the population is growing. It will also increase because there is better care of teeth now then there was back then. Between 1950 and 1965, first-year enrollment increased slowly from 3,226 to 3,808 (18 percent): that’s an increase of about 1.2 percent a year. In 1975, the number of dental schools increased to 60.

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