Dental hygiene grads impress with research efforts

Erica Spanyers and Laura Shaw, 2016 dental hygiene graduates, received first place honors June 9 at the annual American Dental Hygienists’ Association meeting in Pittsburgh for their student research poster that compared the sharpening efficiency of tooth scalers using a ceramic stone vs. a diamond-plated stone.

“Laura and I chose this as our research project because the diamond-plated sharpening cards were newly purchased for the junior class ,and we were interested to see if those were superior to what we used at the time, which were the ceramic stones,” Shaw said.

Their research was funded by a $750 summer research grant from the College of Dentistry. As first place winners in the national competition, they received a $1,000 stipend and UNMC’s Dental Hygiene Department also received $1,000. The students asked that the department award go to the 50th Anniversary Dental Hygiene Endowment.

“We wanted to support the endowment fund in recognition of the outstanding faculty,” Spanyers said. “Erica and I would not be where we are today without their dedication and support.”

Jeffrey Payne, D.D.S., a professor in the department of surgical specialties, was their primary mentor. Mark Beatty, D.D.S., a professor in the department of adult restorative dentistry, along with Heather Hessheimer, an assistant professor, in the department of dental hygiene, served as co-mentors.