Dental Hygiene Education in Colorado

We have four excellent educational institutions that exist to build and support the dental hygiene workforce here in Colorado.  Each of our programs has their own unique mix of faculty, staff, students and administrative infrastructure that provide our state with qualified candidates for dental hygiene licensure.  Each school meets the standards for dental hygiene education set by the commission on dental accreditation.  Accreditation officers perform periodic site visits to review that standards of dental hygiene education are maintained at all schools nationwide.  This is true for new and existing dental hygiene programs in both public and private institutions of higher education.

An informational survey will be completed this year by an independent health institute and all dental hygienists are urged to participate so that vital statistics about our workforce will be available.   The last survey of this kind conducted in Colorado in 1998 was commissioned by the board of dental examiners in cooperation with the University of Colorado, School of Dentistry and the Area Health Education Centers.  This data can be used to better understand the characteristics of our workforce and inform us to meet the needs of the population we serve. 

But sometimes I wonder: are the people who are positioned to make decisions directing the future of our profession informed about the status of our workforce?   

We need to have the right number and balance of qualified dental personnel in a variety of work settings throughout the state.  We need dentists and dental hygienists for independent private practice, specialist practice, community health center practice, scholarly research and public health programs.  We need employers and employees. 

And we need educators. 

What is the value of a career in dental academics?  Is the remuneration commensurate with that value?   Are the individuals making decisions about the future of the profession also considering the future of dental education?  

You may believe we need more clinical dental hygienists.  But do the factors of economics, workforce numbers and employment opportunities bear that out?

You may believe we need another dental hygiene education program.  But do we have sufficient community resources, educators and employment opportunities to support another?

You may believe that community colleges and proprietary schools can more readily supply clinical dental hygienists than large universities.  But where then will the educators, experienced independent practitioners, researchers and scholars come from without a Baccalaureate degree program to advance these roles of dental hygiene?    Can we sustain a profession without ensuring its diversity?

What role does an informed public have in matters of legislation and policy in this area?  How can we make our voice heard?    Give some thought to these things.  Become informed first.  Then take action to lend your support to the programs already established for the education of a competent, professional dental and dental hygiene workforce for Colorado.

by Valerie Orlando

SCDA Annual Meeting
Join SCDA at the 20th Annual Meeting on Special Care Dentistry, March 14-16, 2008, in San Antonio, Texas, fora clinically-focused program with didactic and hands-on sessions covering a variety of topics pertinent to pediatric care, such as:

• Music and the Special Needs Patient: A Noteworthy Practice Model
• Prophylactic Antibiotics Redux ?Yes, No or Maybe So
• Incorporating Implants into the Special Needs Practice
• Treating Fearful Patients with and without Cognitive Impairment: A
  Healing Art
• Outpatient Sedation Modalities for Patients with Special Needs
  Registration will be live this Winter! Visit www.SCDAonline.org
  for event details.
  

Mark Your Calendar!
Annnual Session - Sept 25-28, 2008