How to hire a dental hygienist?
Dental hygienists are allied healthcare professionals who work alongside dentists to provide preventive oral health therapies.
These professionals play a vital role in maintaining dental clinics as they provide quality care.
As a recruiter, if you are planning to hire dental hygienists, it is essential to understand their responsibilities and the demand for their skills.
This process helps you recruit better and make your staffing easier.
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) reports a decline in the availability of dental professionals, including hygienists, in rural and non-metropolitan areas.
The shortage can make recruitment more challenging for healthcare facilities. This blog explains how to hire a dental hygienist and identify qualified professionals to meet your facility’s staffing needs.
Key responsibilities of dental hygienists in patient care
One essential practice to follow while recruiting is to know the responsibilities of the role.
As you are planning to hire dental hygienists, understand that they play a vital role in maintaining oral health by performing a variety of tasks.
Their primary duties include cleaning teeth, removing plaque and tartar, and taking X-rays to help diagnose oral issues.
Hygienists also assess patients’ overall oral health, identify potential problems such as cavities or gum disease, and report these findings to the dentist for further diagnosis and treatment.
Through these efforts, dental hygienists ensure that patients receive timely care and maintain optimal oral health.
Additionally, dental hygienists have other important responsibilities. These can include administrative tasks, which are explained in more detail in the infographic below.
To hire a skilled professional, you must know the responsibilities. It will help you clearly outline both the core duties of the role and any supporting responsibilities.
A detailed infographic is included to provide a clearer understanding of these support duties.
Key support responsibilities of dental hygienists
Why is there a demand to hire dental hygienists?
There are multiple reasons behind the demand for dental hygienists in the USA.
A few reasons include growing awareness of oral health and disease prevention.
Along with this, the healthcare sector is increasingly focusing on preventive care strategies. This has led to a substantial rise in demand for dental hygienists.
However, despite this demand, many regions of the USA still face shortages of skilled professionals.
As a result, access to quality oral healthcare remains a challenge for residents in those areas.
According to the National Institutes of Health, approximately 20 percent of the people in the USA live in rural areas. However, only 14 percent of dentists practice in such settings.
This disparity limits access to dental healthcare services for a significant portion of the US population.
How to hire a dental hygienist for your healthcare facility
As a healthcare recruiter, you may wonder how facilities recruit dental hygienists.
While planning to hire a dental hygienist, as a recruiter, it is your duty to understand the staffing requirements.
Knowing the workforce requirements will help you make planned decisions on whether to hire a contract or full-time dental hygienist based on your requirements.
Contractual vs. full-time dental hygienist staffing
Dental hygienists can work in various settings, such as dental offices, primary health centers, and nursing homes.
Knowing your facility’s requirements and evaluating patient growth can help you address staffing gaps at your clinic.
After the evaluation, you can hire a dental hygienist on a contractual basis for their specific duration requirements.
With flexible recruiting options, contractual staffing for dental hygienists is a perfect solution for managing seasonal patient demand.
It is also very cost-effective compared to recruiting a full-time dental hygienist.
If you are planning to improve patient care and the brand image of the clinic, you can choose to hire a full-time dental hygienist.
Understanding the flexible staffing models in modern healthcare can help you adapt to changing needs without compromising care.
The decision to hire a full-time or contractual dental hygienist depends on various factors. Those factors can include the facility’s operational needs, financial considerations, flexibility, and continuity of patient care.
As a healthcare recruiter, if your question is, ” How should I use a staffing platform to hire dental hygienists?
Start by choosing a partner, and you can see a demo that helps you hire professionals ready to work.
Create a detailed job description.
Once you have decided on a staffing model. You can create a detailed job description.
Your job description must have the required qualifications and experience. You should also specify the skills required, in addition to state licenses.
Maintaining a comprehensive job description helps you receive profiles of candidates who are interested in the job role. This saves your time and helps you hire faster.
Core skills and responsibilities to include in a job description
The difference between dental hygienists, dentists, and dental assistants
While dentists are doctors who provide diagnosis and treatment for various oral healthcare needs, dental hygienists and dental assistants work alongside dentists to deliver these services effectively.
These professionals primarily focus on preventive oral care and patient education.
Dental assistants usually hold a diploma and help dentists and dental hygienists with clinical and administrative tasks.
These include preparing dental instruments, maintaining patient records, managing appointments, and assisting patients.
Skills and qualifications to look for in dental hygienists
To hire a dental hygienist, the following educational qualifications and skill sets should be considered.
Recruiting the right candidate starts with reviewing their education and practical skills. These directly affect the quality of patient care.
Dental hygienists play a vital role in preventive oral care, so strong interpersonal and technical skills are equally important.
In addition to licensing, employers should look for candidates who show professionalism, precision, and a patient-first mindset.
If you are looking for qualified candidates for hospital settings, partnering with healthcare staffing platforms can help you find professionals with hospital experience.
Below are the key qualifications and skills to evaluate during the hiring process:
- A three-year Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in Dental Hygiene from an accredited university.
- Dental hygienists have to be licensed to practice in every state in the USA. However, the license requirements vary by state. The National Board Dental Hygiene Examination, administered by the Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations (JCNDE), is mandatory for all U.S. licensing jurisdictions.
- Some states also mandate that dental hygienists complete a regional or state clinical board examination for licensure.
- A cardiopulmonary resuscitation certification
- Should be detail-oriented with good communication skills and fine hand-eye coordination to use clinical instruments.
- Even though not compulsory, relevant practical exposure in the field is desirable.
Reviewing these qualifications and skills helps identify competent dental hygienists.
Check license and practice guidelines.
Dental hygienist licenses are managed by the state dental or dental hygiene board in the state where they practice.
Licenses must generally be renewed every one to two years, depending on state requirements.
Getting a license will include submitting an application and providing proof of education and examination scores.
For most states, continuing education is a condition for license renewal.
Before you hire a dental hygienist, ensure that the job description aligns with the scope of work established by your state.
Even after recruiting, you must frequently verify that the candidate’s license is up to date to avoid compliance issues.
Dental hygienist job outlook and pay scale
One more vital point to follow during the recruiting process is to have knowledge about the salaries.
As a recruiter, you may know that the dental healthcare field is evolving. The demand for skilled professionals is growing, and technology continues to advance.
Over the decade, around 16,400 openings for dental hygienists are projected each year.
This significant growth makes it important to stay aware of the current salary across the country.
While recruiting for an entry-level position, you can pay $77,052 per year.
In the same way, if you want to hire experienced workers, you need to pay $110,175 per year.
Checklist to hire a dental hygienist
Finding the right dental hygienist involves more than reviewing resumes. It means choosing someone who can provide good patient care and work well with the team.
As key contributors to a dental practice’s success, hygienists should bring strong clinical knowledge. They should also communicate clearly and work efficiently in a fast-paced environment.
Their role requires attention to detail, empathy, and a strong understanding of preventive care.
Ensuring the candidate aligns with your clinic’s standards and culture is just as crucial as checking qualifications.
The checklist below helps you create an effective staffing process:
- Verify that the candidate’s Dental Hygiene degree is from an accredited institution.
- Adhere to state license requirements and any additional regulations.
- If licensed in another state, check for reciprocity and endorsement as applicable.
- Check whether the candidate has passed the CPR certification, if applicable, in your state.
- The candidate’s practical knowledge in the field needs to be evaluated.
- Assess familiarity with various dental instruments and software.
- Look for good communication skills.
- Ensure the candidate has no history of malpractice.
Following these steps will allow you to make planned recruiting decisions.
Challenges associated with hiring a dental hygienist in the USA
Recruiting dental hygienists in the U.S. comes with multiple challenges. Employers must navigate strict and often varying licensure requirements across states, ensure that roles align with state-specific scope-of-practice laws, and address workforce shortages in underserved areas.
Additionally, missing license renewals or overburdening staff can lead to burnout and compliance risks.
These issues make it essential for dental practices to stay proactive in workforce planning and credentialing management.
Here are some of the most common challenges you may face:
- Compliance with the varying state licensing requirements
- Adhering to the scope of practice detailed for the particular state
- Regulatory issues if the license renewal is missed
- Burnout due to the physically demanding nature of the job
- Shortage of qualified dental hygienists, particularly in non-metropolitan areas.
Addressing these challenges helps ensure effective recruitment and quality patient care.
How is MedSquirrels a great solution for hiring a dental hygienist?
Finding skilled dental hygienists may be a challenging task. Especially when demand is high and qualified candidates are limited. Competing with other practices can mean offering higher pay and waiting longer to fill positions.
To overcome these challenges, you need to be aware of the best strategies for recruiting a dental hygienist.
Practicing proven strategies can save your practice time and help you hire qualified applicants.
Along with the strategies, you must also need the right platforms which can make staffing stress-free.
While choosing staffing partners, you can reduce dependence on traditional agencies. These agencies may not provide credentialing, compliance, and onboarding assistance.
When you partner with traditional agencies, you often face issues like slow placements, inconsistent vetting, and high markups.
To overcome these challenges, choosing a tech-enabled recruiting platform like MedSquirrels can be highly beneficial.
This platform addresses issues such as credentialing and provides access to skilled professionals.
MedSquirrels also offers cost-effective staffing plans that ensure affordability for your facility’s specific recruiting needs.
It is an AI-powered dental hygienist staffing platform that helps you scale your team efficiently and reduce time-to-hire.
Recruiters like you can schedule a free demo to see how MedSquirrels can simplify your dental hygienist recruiting process. Professionals can browse open jobs and apply for those jobs that fit their requirements.
FAQs
Why should healthcare facilities hire dental hygienists?
Dental hygienists are essential as they help patients maintain good oral health and identify dental problems early. Recruiting qualified hygienists improves workflow and allows dentists to focus on providing quality treatment.
What should employers include in a dental hygienist job description?
As an employer, you should clearly outline required qualifications, certifications, and state licensing requirements in the job description. It is also important to include both core clinical duties and supporting responsibilities to set clear expectations and attract suitable candidates.
How can recruiters attract qualified dental hygienists?
Recruiters like you can attract top candidates by offering competitive compensation, clear job descriptions, and growth opportunities. Using digital staffing platforms and maintaining a smooth recruiting process also help you improve the candidate experience and response rates.
How can MedSquirrels help reduce the hidden costs of poor dental hygienist recruiting?
MedSquirrels helps you reduce recruiting costs by connecting you with licensed, verified dental hygienists. Its flat-fee pricing avoids traditional agency markups. You can also save time with faster candidate sourcing and support for credentialing and onboarding.
What types of dental roles can you hire through MedSquirrels?
With MedSquirrels, you can hire dental hygienists and dental assistants for your practice. You can find qualified professionals who match your clinical and staffing needs. It also supports credentialing and onboarding to simplify the recruiting process.
