There are Vermont dental hygienist schools that provide training and administer state certification exams. The American Dental Association’s (ADA) Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations offers the written exams to qualified candidates on completion of their tertiary training. See what dental hygienist schools in Vermont are enrolling near you.
Brief Overview of the Work
Dental hygiene is a preventive dental requirement implemented by a dental hygienist. The dental hygienist works in a dental setting to provide preventive oral care to patients. Some of their duties include cleaning and polishing teeth, removing soft and hard deposits from the teeth as well as other preventive oral health measures.
Dental hygienists use an assortment of instruments to accomplish this and so have a certain level of dexterity. In addition to this, they also provide support to the attendant dentist in carrying out complex dental procedures. The main role of the dental hygienist is to enforce preventive oral health in their patients. They teach the patients how to floss, use the right toothbrush amongst other preventive measures.
Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement
Most states require a high school diploma, a degree from an accredited dental hygienist school and state certification in order for one to practice as a dental hygienist.
In addition to the formal requirements, the prospective dental hygienist must possess good interpersonal skills as the profession involves a lot of person to person contact. Moreover, they must also be able to demonstrate a certain level of dexterity in order to handle the various dental instruments they will encounter in the discharge of their duties.
Employment and Job Outlook
In the state of Vermont, most dental hygiene practitioners find employment in personal dental practices, public health or teaching institutions. Due to the increasing need for dental services, more dental practices are hiring more than one hygienist and this trend is expected to increase with time. Countrywide, 174,100 jobs were held by dental hygienists, a number that is set to increase at a rate of 36% per annum through to 2018. However, it is worth noting that most dental hygienists are hired on a part time basis. This means that as more openings come up, they will represent numerous opportunities due to the flexible nature of the work.
Earnings
Dental hygienists earned a median annual salary of $66,570 in May 2008 with the top ten percentile taking home over $91,000. These earnings however, vary from place to place and from practice to practice. Therefore, in Vermont it would be possible to find a widely cutting cross section of different earnings and benefits available to the dental hygienist.