ADA.org: Future of Dentistry Full Report

FUTURE OFDENTISTRY

Contemporary Allied Dental Education Issues

There are a number of issues related to allied den-
tal personnel and the oral health care delivery sys-
tem that are encountered in the environment of the
dental workplace, rather than the educational set-
ting. These dental workforce issues are often col-
ored by emotion and controversy. Recruitment,
salary, flexible schedules, organizational behavior,
professional respect, retention, and other major
challenges are vexing problems within the oral
health care delivery system. Dental education has a
role to play in seeking solutions to these challenges.

EDUCATIONAL CAPACITY

It is clear from the data in Tables 6.9 and 6.10
that the allied dental education system responds
quite rapidly to changes in demand for allied dental
personnel. It is very difficult for dental schools to
implement or terminate a program to respond to
market conditions. In some settings it may be easi-
er to start a new program than to expand an exist-
ing program, so long as economies of scale do not

become an over-riding concern. The relative ease of

capacity building has the additional advantage that

it enables state community college systems to locate

training programs in a larger variety of communi-

ties, thereby creating a more effective geographic

distribution of the needed allied dental workforce.

PROGRAM ATTRITION

One of the significant problems faced by all allied

dental education programs is attrition among

enrolled students, particularly those in first year.

Excessive attrition among enrolled students has

multiple causes, both internal and external to the

particular educational program. But in all cases

such attrition reduces the economic efficiency of the

training program, becoming a greater problem the

costlier the program per student. Fortunately, the

student attrition among dental hygiene students

appears to be declining. While student attrition can

never be eliminated, more efforts may be advised to

understand and counteract the problem.

BACCALAUREATE AND CERTIFICATE EDUCATION

There is an unfortunate tension between those

who see only an either/or relationship between bac-

calaureate and certificate education of dental

hygienists, and those who see opportunity and benefit

in the complementary nature of these two education-

al outcomes. The clear majority of dental hygienists

graduated each year leave college with a certificate or

an associate degree. True baccalaureate hygienists are

in the minority. However, the majority of both groups

enter in-office dental hygiene practice.

Among the baccalaureate dental hygienists are

significantly greater numbers who have the educa-

tion background and the leadership capabilities that

make them ideal professionals for the teaching and

the dental public health sectors. The long-term

vitality of the United States dental hygiene services

depends on strong and capable educational leader-

ship functioning on behalf of the 255 accredited

dental hygiene programs in this country.

APPROPRIATE DUTIES

Historically there has been great concern about

the scope of duties for all members of the allied den-

tal team. Quality dental hygiene programs can train

dental hygienists properly for a variety of duties

Dental Education

Mean In-District First-Year Costs for Tuition and Fees

for Dental Assistants, Dental Laboratory Technicians,

and Dental Hygienists, 1994/95 to 1998/99

Source: ADA, Surveys of Allied Dental Education.

10,000

9,000

8,000

7,000

6,000

5,000

4,000

3,000

2,000

1,000

0

Dental Assistants

Dental Laboratory Technicians

1994 /95 1995/96 1996/97 1997/98 1998/ 99

FIGURE 6. 4

Dental Hygienists

YEAR

FIR

ST-

Y

EA

R

COSTS

F

O

R

T

UI

TI

ON

A

ND

FEE

S