Dental Hygiene Mission and Goals
Mission/Purpose
Through quality, comprehensive, evidence-based education, patient-centered clinical care, and community outreach experiences, the mission of the South College Dental Hygiene program is to equip future dental hygienists with the skills necessary to reach their potential as a dental healthcare provider. The program faculty seek to instill in graduates the desire to continue education, become life-long learners, and contribute to the enhancement of the dental professional.
Program Goals and Expected Outcomes
The goal of the Dental Hygiene program is to prepare competent dental hygiene graduates who utilize and integrate knowledge and apply critical thinking skills related to biomedical science, dental science, and dental hygiene science.
- Provide clinical experiences and opportunities that support and encourage the development of communication and psychomotor skills relevant to the practice of dental hygiene.
- Prepare dental hygiene graduates to display professionalism along with ethical leadership in the delivery of evidenced based patient care.
- Prepare dental hygiene graduates to utilize reasoning, judgment, critical thinking skills, and leadership skills necessary to identify problems, develop and implement solutions, and evaluate the effectiveness of these solutions.
- Consider student’s individuality and support their needs and development, which encourage them to reach their full potential as dental healthcare providers.
- Prepare dental hygiene graduates who can function in the interprofessional health care system and meet the needs of elderly, medically compromised, culturally diverse, disadvantaged, and mentally and physically challenged.
- Encourage participation in community-based outreach programs to improve the oral health and well-being of others.
- Instill the desire to continue education by becoming a life-long learner, advancing the practice of dental hygiene through research, and participating in professional associations.
Upon completion of the Dental Hygiene program:
- Dental hygiene graduates will be competent in teaching patients about health education strategies for disease prevention and health promotion, and counseling patients about the impact of good nutrition on oral health.
- Dental hygiene graduates will be competent in delivering patient care including use of infection and hazard control procedures to prevent transmission of disease and provide a safe environment. Including assessing, treatment planning, and providing preventative and therapeutic dental hygiene care for children, adolescents, adults, geriatric, and special needs patients.
- Dental hygiene graduates will continue education and become life-long learners, advancing the practice of dental hygiene through research and participating in professional associations. Dental hygiene students will be competent in producing effective written communication on literature reviews, research, and assignments.
- Dental hygiene graduates will be competent in providing community and public oral health strategies through outreach service.