What does a dental hygienist do?
Dental hygienists are professionals who provide preventative oral care under a dentist's supervision. They are concerned mostly in treating minor oral health conditions. They clean teeth, examine any signs of damage and oral diseases and provide dental recommendations and after-care treatment. They educate patients with proper oral hygiene and counseling about how good nutrition impacts oral health. They also teach them ways to improve and maintain good oral health.
Dental hygienist responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real dental hygienist resumes:
- Assist dentist to manage dental and medical emergencies by maintaining CPR certification.
- Assist front office with eligibility interviews and inputting information of future patients into Dentrix computer system.
- Perform all the same duties as a dental hygienist under the supervision of a RDH.
- Enter all services render, treatment plan and suggest into DENTRIX computer system; including clinical charting.
- Develop a course plan, instruction materials, and curriculum goals for students as a didactic instructor for radiology.
- Sterilize surgical instrument trays, set up and operate ultrasonice cleaners, maintain and operate autoclaves, assemble surgical trays.
- Expand functions license and current CPR certification
- General RDH responsibilities and periodontal therapies are given.
- Perform dental assistant expand duties, coronal polishing, sterilization technician.
- Sterilize instruments using autoclaves and chemical disinfectants to maintain accept standards.
- Design and implement curriculum, programs and materials for dental radiology.
- Position demands compassion and patience for animals and their owners under stressful circumstances
- Qualify to run sterilization equipment and maintain sterile working environments meeting OSHA standards.
- Evaluate patients potential health risk associate to oral/systemic disease and promote healthy behavior change.
- Chart existing restorations or conditions, mix dental materials and perform coronal polishing procedures.
Dental hygienist skills and personality traits
We calculated that 30% of Dental Hygienists are proficient in Patients, Patient Care, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Critical thinking, Communication skills, and Problem-solving skills.
We break down the percentage of Dental Hygienists that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 30%
Offered preventive dental care including oral cancer screenings, routine teeth cleanings to military veterans including physically and medically compromised patients
- Patient Care, 13%
Provided and coordinated quality patient care including complete prophylaxis, sealant applications, periodontal treatment, and comprehensive patient education.
- CPR, 10%
Expanded functions license and current CPR certification
- Medical History, 5%
Provided patient assessment, evaluated clinical findings, reviewed medical history and previous dental records for efficient dental care.
- Infection Control, 5%
Provided oral hygiene services -Managed patient recall system -Maintained infection control -Managed office flow
- Work Ethic, 4%
Awarded numerous certificates, accommodation medals and recognition ribbons for my contributions and work ethics throughout my military career.
"patients," "patient care," and "cpr" are among the most common skills that dental hygienists use at work. You can find even more dental hygienist responsibilities below, including:
Critical thinking. One of the key soft skills for a dental hygienist to have is critical thinking. You can see how this relates to what dental hygienists do because "dental hygienists must be able to assess and evaluate patients and to develop oral hygiene care plans." Additionally, a dental hygienist resume shows how dental hygienists use critical thinking: "identified critical barriers to dental care in the special needs population. "
Communication skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling dental hygienist duties is communication skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "dental hygienists must share information with dentists and patients about oral health status, oral hygiene care plans, and, if necessary, lifestyle counseling." According to a dental hygienist resume, here's how dental hygienists can utilize communication skills in their job responsibilities: "developed skills utilizing ultrasonic instruments and hand instruments developed outstanding written and verbal communication skills"
Problem-solving skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of dental hygienists is problem-solving skills. This skill is critical to many everyday dental hygienist duties, as "dental hygienists develop and implement oral hygiene care plans to maintain or improve patients’ oral health." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "experience in problem solving and conflict resolution concerning situations involving uncooperative patients and parents of patients. "
Detail oriented. A big part of what dental hygienists do relies on "detail oriented." You can see how essential it is to dental hygienist responsibilities because "dental hygienists must follow specific rules and protocols to help dentists diagnose and treat a patient." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical dental hygienist tasks: "maintained detailed records and routinely recorded periodontal charting including: dentrix and open dental. "
Dexterity. A commonly-found skill in dental hygienist job descriptions, "dexterity" is essential to what dental hygienists do. Dental hygienist responsibilities rely on this skill because "dental hygienists must be good at working with their hands." You can also see how dental hygienist duties rely on dexterity in this resume example: "maintain high dexterity with hand instruments, ultrasonic cavitron inserts and prophy handpieces to remove hard deposits and stains from teeth. "
Interpersonal skills. While "interpersonal skills" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to dental hygienist responsibilities. Much of what a dental hygienist does relies on this skill, seeing as "dental hygienists work closely with dentists." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of dental hygienists: "perform preventive and periodontal needs to each patient obtain digital x-rays and panoramic provide interpersonal communication to each individual needs"
The three companies that hire the most dental hygienists are:
- Heartland Dental479 dental hygienists jobs
- Benevis
405 dental hygienists jobs
- Aspen Dental338 dental hygienists jobs
Choose from 10+ customizable dental hygienist resume templates
Build a professional dental hygienist resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your dental hygienist resume.
Compare different dental hygienists
Dental hygienist vs. Implant coordinator
The Hygienist is a specialist in the promotion of clean conditions for the preservation of health. They work in various environments, from factories and building sites to offices.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, dental hygienist responsibilities require skills like "medical history," "infection control," "work ethic," and "local anesthesia." Meanwhile a typical implant coordinator has skills in areas such as "bls," "surgical procedures," "oral surgery," and "surgical implants." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
Implant coordinators tend to reach similar levels of education than dental hygienists. In fact, implant coordinators are 3.9% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 4.6% more likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Dental hygienist vs. Hygienist
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, dental hygienist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "patient care," "medical history," "infection control," and "work ethic." Meanwhile, a hygienist has duties that require skills in areas such as "oral health," "patient education," "dental practice," and "hygiene procedures." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Hygienists earn similar levels of education than dental hygienists in general. They're 1.5% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 4.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Dental hygienist vs. Pediatric dental hygienist
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a dental hygienist is likely to be skilled in "patients," "patient care," "cpr," and "medical history," while a typical pediatric dental hygienist is skilled in "medical histories," "patient education," "oral health education," and "proactive approach."
Pediatric dental hygienists typically earn similar educational levels compared to dental hygienists. Specifically, they're 1.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.8% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Types of dental hygienist
Updated January 8, 2025
