Dental Hygiene

Course overview: A dental hygienist is a rewarding career where your skills to deliver current oral health promotion, periodontal and preventive treatment to a wide range of patients makes a difference. The course is designed to ensure you meet the standards and skills necessary to enable you to register with the General Dental Council and hold the title of dental hygienist.

As a dental hygienist you will be proactive in the prevention and maintenance of periodontal disease and improving ‘smiles’. The course blends equal theoretical and practical learning within the on campus phantom head skills lab and the Student Dental Facility.

As a competent, accountable, problem-solving and evidence-based practitioner, you need excellent manual dexterity and communication skills to meet the high expectations and demands of the modern dental practice. You need to be able to effectively communicate with the public and other healthcare providers at all levels. As with all healthcare professionals the public place a high level of expectation and trust in their dental hygienist and therefore to work in this sector it is essential that you are able to demonstrate the core values embedded within the NHS Constitution.

After developing periodontal instrumentation skills within the phantom head skills lab you progress to your professional placement in the Student Dental Facility to treat your own patients under close supervision. This is the core of your practice experience. You also undertake oral health promotion placements where you will develop and deliver sessions to improve oral health in a variety of community settings. In Year 2 you have a one-week radiography placement at Newcastle Dental Hospital.

Top reasons to study this course

1. Industry-standard facilities: state-of-the-art simulation facilities and the Student Dental Facility support the development of your practical and professional skills. 2. Experienced teaching team: dedicated and enthusiastic teaching team have a strong focus on evidence-base practice. 3. Multi-disciplinary working: benefit from shared modules with other healthcare students.

After the course: Employment prospects are excellent; once registered, you will be eligible to work in general dental practice, private practice, hospital departments, community dental services, specialist practices, defence medical services, dental access centres and research. You may also consider postgraduate study in specialist subjects. Graduates have returned to Teesside University as lecturers, and as clinical supervisors to support students during their clinical development in the Student Dental Facility.