Ready?
Dental Hygienist — your shift
History, then look, then clean, then protect — and look at the whole mouth, not just the teeth. Do the job one step at a time. Tap the thing that should happen next.
Full screen — no distractions
What does a dental hygienist do?
You clean below the gumline where nobody can reach at home, and you spot the things in a mouth that turn out not to be about teeth at all.
Also called: oral health therapist, hygienist, dental therapist.
A day looks like
- 1You read the medical history before you pick anything up, because half of it changes what you are allowed to do.
- 2You work in a space the size of a matchbox, upside down, in a mirror.
- 3You show somebody how to floss for the fourth year running and do not let it show.
- 4You find an ulcer that has been there too long and make sure the dentist looks at it today.
Hardest part
Telling people the truth about their own habits, weekly, without becoming somebody they dread. Shame makes people stop coming, and the ones who stop coming are the ones who lose teeth.
Best part
Gums that were bleeding at every point six months ago and are now completely healthy, because somebody actually took your advice.
How you actually become a dental hygienist
- At schoolSciences, steady hands, and not minding being very close to people.
- TrainingA two- or three-year diploma or degree in dental hygiene and therapy, then registration.
- How longTwo to three years to qualify; most work chairside from the first month of training.
- Your first jobHygienist in a general dental practice, usually working across two or three dentists' lists.
Frequently asked questions
- Is a hygienist the same as a dentist?
- No — it is a separate registered profession with its own training. Hygienists do the periodontal work and prevention; dentists diagnose and do fillings, crowns and extractions. Dental therapists sit between the two and can do some fillings as well.
- Why can't I just brush properly instead?
- Brushing removes soft plaque. Once it hardens into calculus below the gumline, nothing you can do at home will shift it — it has to be removed mechanically, which is exactly what the appointment is for.
- Do hygienists really look for cancer?
- Yes. Because they see the same mouths regularly and examine the soft tissues as routine, hygienists are one of the most common ways an early oral cancer gets picked up.
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