dental hygienists

[vaio]

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can they have their own practice like a dentist?
are they limited in terms of the procedures they can do on the patient? o/w wouldn't it be cheaper to get work done by a hygenist?

 

[Revellian]

Hygienists can practice in an unsupervised setting in some states, but not all. Their scope of practice also varies from state to state. In an attempt to solve their access-to-care problems, states such as Colorado even allow hygienists to place amalgam and composite restorations, as long as a treatment plan has been approved by a supervising dentist. As to your last question, hygienists in unsupervised settings typically charge just as much as dentists, and haven't improved acces-to-care. If you're interested in reading more:

http://www.healthinschools.org/sh/charts.pdf
http://www.ada.org/prof/resources/topics/report_hygiene.pdf
http://www.healthinschools.org/sh/policy_app1.asp