J Dent Hyg Sci.  2017 Jun;17(3):193-201. 10.17135/jdhs.2017.17.3.193.

Competencies for Entry into the Profession of Dental Hygiene

• Bae SM
• Chung WG
• Jang JH
• Mun SJ
• Shin BM
• Shin SJ

• KMID: 2386564
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.17135/jdhs.2017.17.3.193

Abstract

This study was conducted to derive core and detailed competencies of dental hygienists to be utilized as educational targets to be reached by graduation as well as basic data that can be reflected in the development and improvement of dental hygiene curricula. This study analyzed publication reports from the Korean Dental Hygienists Association, the International Federation of Dental Hygienists, the Commission on Dental Accreditation, and the American Dental Education Association. Based on the academic classification system for dental hygiene studies, the components of core and detailed competencies of dental hygiene school at the time of graduation were extracted and developed through expert panel discussions. This study defined competencies at the graduation level of dental hygiene school and derived eight core competencies and their 52 detailed competencies to serve as educational objectives from four areas: professionalism, communication, clinical practice, and community and health promotion. In the future, it will be necessary to conduct self-assessments of competencies based on those developed in this study, at time of the graduation from dental hygiene school, as well as to continuously develop competency-based curricula according to entry level, knowledge level, and graduation level. Thus, it is urgently necessary to develop a system that can evaluate the competencies of dental hygienists after graduation and put this system into practical use.

Keyword

Competency-based education; Core competency; Dental hygiene; Specific competency

MeSH Terms

Accreditation
Classification
Competency-Based Education
Curriculum
Dental Hygienists
Education, Dental
Health Promotion
Humans
Oral Hygiene*
Professionalism
Publications
Self-Assessment