{"id":47191,"date":"2000-02-22T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2000-02-22T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2000\/02\/22\/featured-speaker-recognized-internationally-as-pioneerin-dental-hygiene-profession\/"},"modified":"2022-08-29T10:55:57","modified_gmt":"2022-08-29T15:55:57","slug":"featured-speaker-recognized-internationally-as-pioneerin-dental-hygiene-profession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unmc.edu\/newsroom\/2000\/02\/22\/featured-speaker-recognized-internationally-as-pioneerin-dental-hygiene-profession\/","title":{"rendered":"Featured Speaker Recognized Internationally as Pioneer\n\nin Dental Hygiene Profession"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/FONT><\/I><\/p>\n


UNMC Dental Hygiene Program in Lincoln Celebrates<\/p>\n

35th Anniversary<\/FONT><\/B><\/p>\n

The University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistrys dental<\/p>\n

hygiene program will celebrate its 35th anniversary Saturday, Feb. 26.<\/p>\n

The program is the only dental hygiene program in Nebraska that offers<\/p>\n

a bachelors degree in dental hygiene.<\/p>\n

Faculty, staff, students and alumni will celebrate with a day of activities<\/p>\n

from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the UNL Student Union, followed by a gala celebration<\/p>\n

in the evening at the Wick Alumni Center in Lincoln. The featured guest<\/p>\n

speaker, Dr. Esther Wilkins, will talk about the changes and advances in<\/p>\n

dental hygiene practice.<\/p>\n

Dr. Wilkins is well-known nationally and internationally in the dental<\/p>\n

hygiene community as an icon of the dental hygiene profession. She wrote<\/p>\n

the textbook that is considered the foundation for dental hygiene and is<\/p>\n

used by most every student in dental hygiene. There were very few textbooks<\/p>\n

for dental hygienists when she started teaching in 1959, said to Caren<\/p>\n

Barnes, professor of surgical specialties, UNMC College of Dentistry.<\/p>\n

The UNMC College of Dentistry dental hygiene program was established<\/p>\n

in 1964 and located in the basement of the student health clinic on the<\/p>\n

main campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The dental hygiene and<\/p>\n

dentistry program relocated in 1968 when a new dentistry facility was built<\/p>\n

at 40th and Holdrege streets.<\/p>\n

Hygienists are licensed professionals who work as a team with dentists,<\/p>\n

dental assistants and dental office staff. There are about 722 dental hygienists<\/p>\n

with active Nebraska licenses, according to the Nebraska Bureau of Examining<\/p>\n

Board.<\/p>\n

An integral part of the dental team, dental hygienists perform oral<\/p>\n

exams, apply sealants, fluoride, clean and polish teeth, expose X-rays,<\/p>\n

assess a patients dental hygiene care needs and tailor a plan to meet<\/p>\n

those needs.<\/p>\n

Its a real bonus for the citizens of Nebraska to have a cutting-edge<\/p>\n

education for dental hygienists in this highly recognized dental college,<\/p>\n

said Gwen Hlava, director of the UNMC dental hygiene program since 1985.<\/p>\n

Our graduates are prepared to provide the finest care to their patients<\/p>\n

and to assist in community activities to promote oral health.<\/p>\n

Like other health professionals, dental hygienists have seen many changes<\/p>\n

over the years.<\/p>\n

The emphasis in dental hygiene is on prevention preventing tooth<\/p>\n

decay and periodontal disease and educating patients on how to care for<\/p>\n

their teeth. We call ourselves the preventive dental professionals, Hlava<\/p>\n

said.<\/p>\n

If we think back as children to our grandparentswe probably watched<\/p>\n

them take out their teeth at night. People are living longer and want to<\/p>\n

keep their teeth. Also, most communities have flouride in their water which<\/p>\n

drastically decreases the incidence of tooth decay.<\/p>\n

What has changed over the years is the emphasis on prevention rather<\/p>\n

than treatment, patient education and the emphasis on the effects of dental<\/p>\n

disease on total body health, Hlava said. Hygienists have available technologically<\/p>\n

advanced instruments such as air polishing and ultrasonic scalers that<\/p>\n

make procedures easier for the hygienist and more comfortable for the patient.<\/p>\n

Faculty have seen changes in the students over the years. Where once<\/p>\n

the dental hygiene profession was made up of predominately young, single,<\/p>\n

first-career women, it now includes men, students with families and those<\/p>\n

who have worked in various careers.<\/p>\n

We have some extremely bright and talented students who are drawn to<\/p>\n

the profession for a variety of reasons. The job opportunities are excellent,<\/p>\n

the profession is flexible. You can work full time, part time, or take<\/p>\n

time out to raise a family and get a job anywhere you go, Hlava said.<\/p>\n

Students get a high-quality education at UNMC. With a total of 40 dental<\/p>\n

hygiene students in the program, they get one-on-one training. Since the<\/p>\n

programs beginning, the graduates have had a 99 percent passing rate on<\/p>\n

national board exams.<\/p>\n

The hygiene programs first director was Elizabeth Warner Waggener,<\/p>\n

a Holland, Mich., native who retired and currently lives in Lincoln. The<\/p>\n

first class of students arrived in September 1964. The professions first<\/p>\n

formal dental hygiene program was established at Fones School of Dental<\/p>\n

Hygiene in 1913 by Alfred C. Fones of Bridgeport, Conn.<\/p>\n

The UNMC College of Dentistry serves Nebraskans and states that have<\/p>\n

no dental schools, including Kansas, South Dakota, North Dakota and Wyoming.<\/p>\n

For five of the last six years, the colleges freshman dentistry class<\/p>\n

has ranked first among the 55 U.S. dental schools for incoming grade-point<\/p>\n

average. The college offers programs in doctor of dental surgery (D.D.S.),<\/p>\n

bachelors degree in dental hygiene, a general practice residency program<\/p>\n

and post-graduate specialty programs in endodontics, orthodontics, periodontics,<\/p>\n

pediatric dentistry and prosthodontics.<\/p>\n

UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the state.<\/p>\n

Through its commitment to research, education, outreach and patient care,<\/p>\n

UNMC has established itself as one of the country’s leading centers for<\/p>\n

cancer research and treatment and solid organ transplantation. During the<\/p>\n

past year, nearly $31 million in research grants and contracts were awarded<\/p>\n

to UNMC scientists, and UNMCs funding from the National Institutes of<\/p>\n

Health increased by 28 percent, going from $16.2 million to $20.7 million.<\/p>\n

UNMCs educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals<\/p>\n

practicing in Nebraska than any other institution.<\/p>\n


 <\/p>\n<\/a><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UNMC Dental Hygiene Program in Lincoln Celebrates 35th Anniversary The University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Dentistrys dental hygiene program will celebrate its 35th anniversary Saturday, Feb. 26. The program is the only dental hygiene program in Nebraska that offers a bachelors degree in dental hygiene. Faculty, staff, students and alumni will celebrate with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":79,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","department-press-release"],"yoast_head":"\nFeatured Speaker Recognized Internationally as Pioneer in Dental Hygiene Profession<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"UNMC Dental Hygiene Program in Lincoln Celebrates 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