by Mark Hartley, Editor of RDH magazine
U.S. News & World Report recently contributed to a trend prevalent in the media and government: Where do we send the unemployed? Yes, let's send them over to dental hygiene school.
In late December 2009, U.S. News & World Report included the dental hygiene profession as one of the 50 best careers in 2010. We just don't see it. RDH and RDH eVillage have conducted surveys over the past year, and we just have nothing but words of caution for job seekers.
In fact, the best piece of advice in the article came from a California hygienist who commented online, saying, "Now, through government-assisted programs, junior colleges in most cities are pumping out hygienists by the truckload. While $32 per hour may be an average, most hygienists are seeing their number of workdays cut by 30-50%." The hygienist concluded by admonishing the news magazine: "I believe a retraction is in order."
Now that's what we see. Too many hygienists vying for jobs that only offer fewer and fewer hours per week. It's not the stuff "careers" are made of.
A couple of things about the U.S. News & World Report article:
1.) 50 is a larger number than you think. If I were to ask you to name off 50 careers, you would start off by quickly stating "lawyer, doctor, baker, chef, barber, banker ..." Somewhere, down the line, you will pause, almost out of breath. Your brows are furrowed in trying to concentrate while thinking of an occupation you have not mentioned yet. Your gaze turns down to the carpet. "Yes, carpet cleaner is the 37th occupation. Need only 13 more."
2.) Seriously, the magazine, in forecasting that jobs in dental hygiene would increase by 36 percent over the next eight years, did promote:
a.) Upward mobility. That's something you don't hear discussed often enough within the profession. The magazine wrote, "With a bachelor's or master's degree, you can find a career in fields including teaching, research, marketing, and consumer advocacy." And that's true. Steps are being taken to ensure career growth.
b.) Occupational injuries. Outside of dental hygiene, you seldom see occupational injuries mentioned. But U.S. News & World Report states quite clearly, "While the work doesn't appear to be very physically exerting, it involves repetitive motions that have been linked to high incidences of carpal tunnel syndrome and to musculoskeletal pain."
c.) Stress levels within dental hygiene are "average," according to the news magazine. The article said, "You will have a fairly steady routine, which helps keep stress levels down ... Still, office dynamics vary widely, so your experience will largely depend on the quality of the dentists you work with, as well as the patients you treat." I dunno. Maybe I spend too much time talking with dental hygienists. But's it's my observation that it's increasingly difficult to find jobs with good dentists who manage with an appropriate style the treatment of patients. What do you think? Is the stress level in dental hygiene merely average?
A Wyoming denturist published on New Year's Eve a letter in the Grand Forks, N.D., newspaper about the amount of money spent by the American Dental Association on lobbying. The author, Gary Vollan, is a representative of the Wyoming State Denturist Association, and he commented on the ADA's efforts to exclude language in North Dakota legislation that would have increased access to care in the Indian Health Service.
I'd like to quote a couple of comments from his letter:
• "The association (ADA) also lobbies to prevent dental hygienists from having independent practices."
• "The ADA works against its own vision and mission statement by suppressing competition that has been trained in providing oral health care services to those who can’t pay dentists’ high prices."
What makes it the letter of the week in my mind is a reference to the ADA's "total lobbying expenditures for 2009 as of October was $2.1 million, as reported by opensecrets.org."
Well, $2.1 million doesn't sound like much in the world of politics. But when everyone else in dentistry has only pennies to spend on lobbyists, it seems much more significant.
So many thanks to Mr. Vollan for turning me on to opensecrets.org. The American Dental Hygienists' Association, by the way, is also listed as one of the health-care agencies tracked by the Web site.
P&G Oral Care has teamed up with the Levin Group to announce its Dream Practice Sweepstakes. The sweepstakes, announced in early December during the Greater New York Dental Meeting, will award 12 dental practices a yearlong enrollment in the Levin Group Total Practice Success Management Consulting Program.
Dental offices can enter the sweepstakes online at Procter & Gamble's Web site at clicking here.
The approximate value of the Levin Group's consulting services is $30,000. Dental practices can participate in the services at either the Arizona or Maryland training facilities for the Levin Group.
"Procter & Gamble supports dental offices, and we want to see them thrive," said Ann Hochman, associate marketing director for P&G Oral Care. "We're excited about this opportunity to offer the Levin Group's services back to the dental community."
The Levin Group and P&G Oral Care announced the first two recipients of the sweepstakes for December: Rock Roy Dental in Roy, Utah, and Karen S. Schichtel, DDS, from Deerfield, Illinois.
The two companies will announce two winners a month for the remainder of the sweepstakes.
"We are excited about joining forces with P&G to help 12 dental practices reach their true potential through the implementation of effective management systems," said Dr. Roger Levin, chairman and CEO of Levin Group. "The comprehensive approach (of the company's consulting services) will allow he practices to achieve their goals and experience growth."
The Levin Group consulting program offers insights on scheduling, case presentation, patient finance, hygiene productivity, executive coaching, communication, team building, financial planning, and other practice management areas.
