Dental Hygenists- what do you do?!
Question:
Dental Hygenists- what do you do?
How long did you go to school and what exactly do you do? how much money do you make? Is a hygenist the same as an assistant?
Answers:
Most dental hygiene programs are 2 years in the program and 1-2 years of prerequisite work before entering the program.
Dental hygiene is much more than just "cleaning" teeth. Patient education and oral hygiene instruction is just as important. If your patients have clean teeth when they leave your office, and then totally neglect their mouth because they are unaware of what to do, then you have not done your job as a hygienist.
Where I live the average commission is around 250-300/day.
A hygienist is not the same as an assistant. Assistants do not require formal training or a license to work. Basically a dental assistant can get on the job training, or receive a certificate by completing a course at a local college. Dental hygienists are licensed and have a degree in order to practice dental hygiene, just as a doctor has a license to practice medicine.