Maximizing Resources: Simplifying Dental Hygiene Instrumentation

By Brenda Sharp McCarson, RDH, BS

Commercial Supporter: Brasseler USA®

Hand instrumentation kits used when performing dental hygiene recare maintenance as well as for patients requiring more complex scaling and root planning (SRP) can contain as many as 12 instruments. However, most dental hygienists only use two to four instruments from either the recare maintenance or the SRP kit during an entire treatment procedure. This article explains how to simplify dental hygiene instrumentation into cassettes with fewer and more advanced instruments in order to realize various benefits for dental hygienists, patients and practices.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

• Identify the most common instruments taught in dental hygiene school and used in clinical practice

• Describe the process for evaluating and simplifying dental hygiene instrumentation

• Explain the process of designing maintenance and SRP hygiene cassettes that contain instrument selections critical for successful treatment outcomes.

• Discuss how to develop a monthly budget that allows for consistent replacement of critical instrumentation

About the Author

Ms. Sharp McCarson is a National Manager-Hygiene at Brasseler, USA.