Dental Hygienist

Their main purpose is to promote good oral health by carrying out treatments, as well as offering lifestyle and dietary advice.

What is a Dental Hygienist?

In dental hygienist jobs, you’ll teach patients about the best ways to maintain their teeth and gum health. You may have regular patients, or have particular people referred to you for a hygienist appointment from a dentist or dental nurse. Depending on your qualifications, you may offer treatments under the supervision of a dentist, such as plaque removal or decay prevention treatments.

Responsibilities

Your responsibilities will vary depending on the setting you work in. You may be part of an NHS practice, or work privately in a dental hygiene centre. Equally you could be based in a residential setting such as a care home, or act as a locum hygienist working across multiple practices.

Usual responsibilities include:

• Adapting your teaching methods to the age and abilities of patients - for example, teaching children about good oral care in an age appropriate way.
• Applying treatments to teeth, such as fluoride, to prevent tooth decay.
• Educating patients on brushing methods, as well as flossing and mouthwash use.
• Liaising with other dental staff like nurses and dentists on the best course of action for patient care following a dental hygiene appointment.
• Making an assessment of cleaning treatments a patient needs as part of a dental hygienist appointment.
• Removing plaque and giving teeth a detailed clean and polish.
• Taking detailed records of the treatments and advice you’ve given, and adding this to patient records.
• Taking impressions and x-rays of teeth to support diagnosis and treatment.
• Using dental equipment, ensure all items are sterilised and stored properly between patients.

Salary

Your dental hygienist salary will depend on whether you are employed in a hygienist job by the NHS or are working privately.

NHS dental hygienists are paid following the NHS Agenda for Change pay structure. You’ll typically begin on band 5, similar to a dental nurse salary, which ranges from £27,055 to £32,934, going higher up the range as you build your experience. As you specialise you could move up to band 6 (£33,706 to £40,588) or even band 7 as an Advanced Dental Technician (£41,659 to £47,672).

If you work outside the NHS, your earning potential could be higher. This is location dependent and down to individual practices. It’s worth looking into average salaries for your location, if you’re considering working privately.

Qualifications

The qualifications required to become a registered dental hygienist in the UK are highly standardised. There are two main routes: through university study (via a degree or a hygienist diploma), or an accredited apprenticeship.

To apply for a degree covering dental hygiene, you’ll need to begin with 2 to 3 A Levels or equivalent, usually including Biological Sciences. You may be able to apply to a foundation degree at some universities with 1 or 2 A Levels. At some universities, a recognised dental nurse qualification can take the place of A levels.

Courses that would qualify you as a dental hygienist include:

• Dental Hygiene and Therapy
• Oral Health Science
• Oral Health Science (Diploma)
• Oral Health Science (Foundation degree)

During your study you’ll likely complete an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS) check. This is in order to legally work with vulnerable people, such as children and adults with additional needs. This is a needed for carrying out formal work once you’re qualified, so if you don’t do this as part of your studies, you’ll need to make sure you complete this before applying for work. You’ll also need to register with the General Dental Council (GDC) in order to maintain your practice.

An alternative to degree level study is completing an advanced apprenticeship in dental care. The first option is a Level 3 Apprenticeship in Dental Nursing. If you are already a qualified Dental Nurse, you could take on the Level 4 Oral Health Practitioner Apprenticeship. Either of these courses would require a minimum 4 or 5 GCSEs at grades 9-4 (A*-C) including Maths and English.

Training and development

Your degree or apprenticeship training will equip you with the key knowledge and skills to practice. However, you’ll need to undertake regular continuous professional development (CPD) to keep up to date with new practices and procedures throughout your work.

To maintain your membership with the GDC you’ll need to complete at least 75 hours worth of CPD every five years. You’ll receive regular audits and observations of your practice, which count towards the hours, as well as observing senior dental staff such as dentists or advanced nurses. This can also include attending public lectures and seminars, especially those run by the General Dental Council themselves.

Skills

The skills you’ll need as a dental hygienist will largely be taught to you during your degree or apprenticeship. Some, however, are also personal and professional traits that are expected across any medical profession.

The skills needed to become a Dental Hygienist are:

• A strong bedside manner and sensitive nature - you may be working with patients who fear the dentists, or have particular conditions that make oral hygiene hard to maintain.
• Ability to work under pressure - you may be working with a patient in pain or discomfort, so being able to do so while remaining calm is very important.
• An ability to adjust your advice and teaching to the individual patient - teaching children the best way to brush will look very different to sessions in a residential care setting, for example.
• Competence with technology and an ability to learn quickly, such as knowing how to operate x-ray machines and carry out tooth moulding processes.
• Good manual dexterity, as you’ll be working on oral care at a very minute scale.
• Having a robust knowledge of procedures and practices involved in the care of your patients.
• Working well in a team - your work exists in collaboration with several other dental professionals, and you’ll need to communicate back and forth with them to provide the best dental treatment for your patients.

Work Experience

You will likely complete several placements while studying towards your degree or apprenticeship in dental hygiene. These will give you the relevant experience you need to complete your role effectively.

Applications for apprenticeships and degrees in dentistry are competitive. When applying it’s important that you show evidence of understanding how a practitioner works on a daily basis when applying for study.

The best way to do this is having evidence of shadowing a dental practitioner. You can contact your local practices to find out if they would allow you to shadow their staff, and spend some time learning what the day to day work of a hygienist looks like.

Time observing dental hygienists in different settings would also be incredibly beneficial. For example, you could compare how hygienists work in an NHS practice vs a private one.

It would be a good idea to then refer to this experience in your dental hygiene personal statement, if your course requires one as part of the application process.

Career Prospects

As you progress through your career you could specialise in working with patients of particular demographics. You could focus on individuals with phobias of dentistry, or with children. As you develop further you may take responsibility for training up new dental hygiene professionals, too.

Your interest in dental hygiene could take you towards postgraduate study, too. You could take courses in Health Care Management or Public Health and attain an MSc. You could then go on to work in more specialised dental public health jobs.