Dental Assistant Training Class

Where To Find Dental Hygiene Jobs

Dental hygienists are highly sought after professionals who are a valuable asset to any dental practice. However, most positions are part time in nature. This makes it necessary for many hygienists to work two or more jobs to earn full time salary. Therefore, it is important to know where to find dental hygiene jobs.

Virtually every dental practice in the country employs at least one hygienist. This is the most logical place to look first when one is seeking employment. However, there are other options that one can consider, some of which are full time positions.

Most states offer employment for dental hygienists with their departments of corrections. This could be considered a higher risk position, thus the pay is often higher than average because the hygienist will be performing care on prisoners. These positions can be full or part time, with some requiring the hygienist to travel from one DOC unit to another on a rotating schedule.

Some hospitals employ dental hygienists to assist patients with their oral health care while they are confined as in-patients. The duties of the hygienist in these positions are not normally as extensive as those working in a dedicated dental practice, so the pay may be slightly lower.

Just as hospitals can have positions for hygienists, long term care facilities such as nursing homes, can as well. Admittedly, not all seniors have all, or even a significant number, of their teeth. However, the ones who do are in need of regular dental care to ensure their oral health and to ensure they keep as many of those teeth as possible.

If one has contacted all of the above potential employers at the local level and come up empty, the internet has made it possible to perform job searches online. One may use a job search engine such as Monster.com or CareerBuilder.com to seek out hygienist positions across the state or the nation. There are thousands of positions listed nationwide at any given time. Then, the question becomes one of whether one is willing to relocate to take a position.

Being a dental hygienist is a highly skilled and valuable occupation. Almost all dentists have at least one hygienist who works with them in their practice. However, not all of these positions are full time. Therefore, it is important for those who need to work full time to have some idea where to find dental hygiene jobs. Fortunately, there are several options available if one is willing to travel when needed.