The Dental Hygiene program at Columbus State Community College is designed to prepare graduates for successful entry into the oral health profession. The dental hygienist is a member of the dental health team and provides a variety of quality oral hygiene services including health education, prevention, and treatment of oral disease to a wide variety of patients. The Columbus State dental hygiene program emphasizes the didactic and clinical skills required to meet the ever-changing oral health care needs. Admission to the program is both limited and selective. Graduates of the program will be eligible to sit for the state, regional and national examinations for licensure. The Ohio State Dental Board requires a full FBI background check for initial application for licensure.

Competencies are part of the practice of dental hygiene; including knowledge, professional attitude and psychomotor/communication skills. The six dental hygiene program competencies must be performed at an acceptable or above level for entry level dental hygiene graduates. Upon completion of the Associate of Applied Science Degree in Dental Hygiene, the graduate will:

• possess the skills and knowledge to manage the ethical and professional issues of dental hygiene practice.
• be able to acquire and analyze information in a scientific and effective manner using critical thinking skills.
• be able to demonstrate written comprehension, critical thinking, and skills for the application of assessment, dental hygiene diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation related to the provision of optimal preventive, therapeutic, and educational dental hygiene services to individuals of diverse populations.
• be able to demonstrate knowledge of safe and effective patient care by adherence to proper infection control, HIPAA requirements, and emergency protocol during the provision of client care.
• be able to initiate and assume responsibility for general health promotion and oral disease prevention through participation in community activities using appropriate interpersonal communication and educational strategies.
• be able to apply self-assessment skills in preparation for life-long learning.

Dental Hygiene Program Philosophy

The term dental hygiene care is used to denote all integrated preventive and treatment services administered to the patient by the dental hygienist. The ability to plan and execute dental treatment is an art as well as a science. The science can be taught, but the art is a talent that must be developed and nurtured. The student of dental hygiene must learn to observe and evaluate signs of oral health and disease, and assess patient reaction and learning. The student must be able to apply principles from the biological, physical, social, behavioral and dental sciences in the care of the patient. It is the philosophy of the Columbus State Community College Dental Hygiene Program that educational and clinical services are mutually dependent and inseparable in the total dental hygiene care of the patient. This approach to dental hygiene will increase understanding and clinical expertise as the dental hygienist engages in the most challenging and rewarding of tasks, that of providing quality patient care which is safe, effective, and individualized.

Accreditation

The Columbus State Community College Dental Hygiene Program was established in 1998. The program is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation. The Commission is a specialized accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education.

Commission on Dental Accreditation
(312) 440-4653
211 E. Chicago Avenue,
Chicago, IL 606611-2678.
 

Third party comments considered can be submitted to the American Dental Association’s Commission on Dental Accreditation and must pertain only to the standards relative to the particular program being reviewed or policies and procedures used in the accreditation process. Comments will be screened by Commission staff for relevancy. For comments not relevant to these issues, the individual will be notified that the comment is not related to accreditation and, where appropriate, referred to the appropriate agency. For those individuals interested in submitting comments, requests can be made to the commission office for receiving standards and/or the Commission’s Evaluation Policies and Procedures. (EEP)