Activities	Clean teeth and examine mouth, head, and neck for signs of oral disease. May educate patients on oral hygiene, take and develop X-rays, or apply fluoride or sealants.
Outlook	Faster-than-average-job growth
Median Income	$68,250 per year in 2010
Work Context & Conditions	Flexible scheduling is a distinctive feature of this job. Full-time, part-time, evening, and weekend schedules are widely available.
Minimum Education Requirements	Associate's Degree
Skills	Social Perceptiveness, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Time Management, Active Learning, Coordination, Reading Comprehension, Speaking
Abilities	Finger Dexterity, Manual Dexterity, Near Vision
Interviews	Sherri Gollins

Job Category		Healthcare Practitioners & Technical
Job Description		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; take and develop dental x-rays; and apply cavity-preventive agents such as fluorides; and pit and fissure sealants. In some states, hygienists administer anesthetics; place and carve filling materials, temporary fillings, and periodontal dressings; remove sutures; perform root-planing as a periodontal therapy; and smooth and polish metal restorations. Although hygienists may not diagnose diseases, they can prepare clinical and laboratory diagnostic tests for the dentist to interpret. Hygienists sometimes work chairside with the dentist during treatment. They help patients develop and maintain good oral health. 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.
Working Conditions		Flexible scheduling is a distinctive feature of this job. Full-time, part-time, evening, and weekend schedules are widely available. Dentists frequently hire hygienists to work only 2 or 3 days a week, so hygienists may hold jobs in more than one dental office. Dental hygienists work in clean, well-lighted offices. Important health safeguards include strict adherence to proper radiological procedures, and use of appropriate protective devices when administering anesthetic gas. Dental hygienists also wear safety glasses, surgical masks, and gloves to protect themselves from infectious diseases.
Salary Range		The median annual wage of dental hygienists was $68,250 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $45,000, and the top 10 percent earned more than $93,820.

Education Required		Dental hygienists typically need an associate’s degree in dental hygiene to enter the occupation. Certificates, bachelor's degrees, and master's degrees in dental hygiene are also available but are less common among dental hygienists. Private dental offices usually require a minimum of an associate’s degree or certificate in dental hygiene. A bachelor's or master's degree is usually required for research, teaching, or clinical practice in public or school health programs. High school students interested in becoming dental hygienists should take courses in biology, chemistry, and mathematics. Some dental hygiene programs also require applicants to have completed at least one year of college. Specific entrance requirements vary from one school to another. Most schools offer laboratory, clinical, and classroom instruction. Hygienists study anatomy, physiology, nutrition, radiography, and periodontology, which is the study of gum disease.
Recommended High School Courses		Biology, Mathematics, Chemistry
Postsecondary Instructional Programs		Biology, Medicine and Dentistry, Education and Training
Certification and Licensing		Every state requires dental hygienists to be licensed; requirements vary by state.

Interest Area		Social Involves working and communicating with, helping, and teaching people.
Work Values		Moral Values Never pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong. Social Service Do things for other people. Security Have steady employment.
Skills		Social Perceptiveness Be aware of others' reactions and understand why they react the way they do. Critical Thinking Use logic and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches. Active Listening Listen to what other people are saying and ask questions as appropriate. Time Management Manage one's own time and the time of others. Active Learning Work with new material or information to grasp its implications. Coordination Adjust actions in relation to others' actions. Reading Comprehension Understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. Speaking Talk to others to effectively convey information.
Abilities		Finger Dexterity Able to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects. Manual Dexterity Able to make quick, coordinated movements of one or two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects. Near Vision Able to see details of objects at a close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Related Jobs		Dentist, Orthodontist, Dentist, Dentist, Prosthodontist, Therapist, Respiratory, Assistant, Medical, Nurse, Registered, Technician, Radiologic, Assistant, Dental, Assistant, Occupational Therapy, Aide, Occupational Therapist, Technologist, Surgical, Physician Assistant
Job Outlook		Employment of dental hygienists is expected to grow by 38 percent from 2010 to 2020, much faster than the average for all occupations. Ongoing research linking oral health and general health will continue to spur the demand for preventative dental services, which dental hygienists often provide. New and increasingly accurate technologies to help diagnose oral health problems are also expected to increase demand. For example, new tests use saliva samples that a hygienist takes to spot early signs of oral cancer. As their practices expand, dentists will hire more hygienists to perform routine dental care, allowing the dentist to see more patients. Also, as the large baby boomer population ages and people keep more of their original teeth than previous generations, the need to maintain and treat these teeth will continue to drive the need for hygienists’ services.
More Information		American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation, American Dental Hygienists' Association, Division of Professional Development, American Medical Association - Health Care Careers
References		Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Dental Hygienists, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dental-hygienists.htm O*NET OnLine, on the Internet at http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/29-2021.00