Dental Hygienist or Nursing??

cardiacRN2006, ADN, RN · Jul 13, 2006

Well, to be honest, the thought of scraping nasty tarter off of some peoples teeth makes me a little sick. I can do without oral secretions.:barf01: So I guess it all depends on what parts of nursing make your stomach uneasy. The majority of us get over it, so there is still hope!

Plus, there is no other degree like nursing. You can work the floor, ICU, case management, home health, psych, GI, forensic days, nights.........

c18436572 · Jul 13, 2006

LOL, Every nurse that I know said the exact same thing! I think the hardest part for me would be either open wounds, or smells. I was thinking of L&D. I was a lamaz coach for one of my friends and didn't seem to have any problem with that. I guess I can't seem to find any information on the specifics of what nurses actually do on a daily basis. I know they put in catheters, IV's, distribute meds, etc.. But I'm not sure what else??

Thanks so much for replying!

Tanya

romie · Jul 13, 2006

The really great thing about nursing is that the actual job tasks that you will perform are endless in variety! Some nurses do bedside nursing tasks that most people think--medication administrations, IV's, caths, ect.... Others sit at a computer all day and never actually see another human being. Others talk on the phone, some just drive from site to site and talk to other professionals face to face, inspect supplies and medications and go off to the next site. The possibilites are only as limited as the populations that nurses work with or the settings that they work in. If it flexibility in job tasks that you are seeking, go with nursing!

Kabin · Jul 13, 2006

There's a lot of changes in the healthcare biz these days and DH's may be pricing themselves out of business. My dentist can't afford to hire them anymore so he does all the teeth cleaning now.

BeccaznRN, RN · Jul 13, 2006

I did the same thing - I started out as a dental hygiene major when I began college. The reason was because I wanted to do health care but I didn't necessarily want all the crazy hours. After doing prereqs for a year and getting waitlisted for the DH program I decided to get some experience and got a job as a dental assistant. Boy am I ever glad I did because I quickly realized how BORING it was. I stuck with it for a year, hating every minute of it, until I finally quit and said I needed something a little more challenging. So here I am, one semester away from graduating with my BSN and I have never been happier. In my opinion, there's no better career in healthcare than being a nurse! If you want to really help people then nursing is where you should be. Trust me, you won't regret your decision.

military spouse · Jul 13, 2006

My neighbor is a DH and sets her own schedule. She never works weekends or holidays and I THINK she makes more than me. Of course, you need to do what makes you happy. Sometimes the thought of the pleasant music and the comfy chair at the dentist's office makes me wish........... Oh, never mind. I'll just go to work and pack the MANY wounds on my 44 year-old patient who weighs 64.5# and is dying of AIDS.

c18436572 · Jul 13, 2006

Well, I just wanted to say thank you all for your input! Believe it or not it has helped me a lot. I think I would rather be a nurse than a Hygienist. You all sound like you really get a lot more out of your jobs than cleaning someone's teeth could accomplish. Thanks again!

Tanya

PhoenixGirl · Jul 14, 2006

One of the reasons I got into nursing is because it *is* such a hectic job.

I could never sit in a chair and do the same thing all day. I'd fight falling asleep all the time and I just don't want to do that, i would end up being miserable. I'm a get up and go type of person.

tictac · Jul 20, 2006

I'm a hygienist going into nursing. Hygiene has its perks, such as great hours and great pay, but there's often little to no benefits and I personally was never comfortable having my livelihood dependent on one person (the dentist). Plus, jobs are very scarce and there are so many nightmare offices out there. That said, I have tremendous respect for hygienists because I know what they went through to get their degrees (sounds VERY similar to nursing school) and I know what they deal with on a daily basis. It's much more than just scaling calculus all day. It sounds easy, but there are many aspects of the job that are very challenging and frustrating. Most of the time, I don't think they get the respect they deserve. I'm going into nursing because I want more variety and options with my career. Hygiene just doesn't offer that. I was initially torn between hygiene and nursing, and chose hygiene because I didn't think I could deal with gross bodily functions! After seeing and smelling the equivalent of mouth poop everyday, I think I can probably handle it now, LOL.

c18436572 · Jul 24, 2006

I'm a hygienist going into nursing. Hygiene has its perks, such as great hours and great pay, but there's often little to no benefits and I personally was never comfortable having my livelihood dependent on one person (the dentist). Plus, jobs are very scarce and there are so many nightmare offices out there. That said, I have tremendous respect for hygienists because I know what they went through to get their degrees (sounds VERY similar to nursing school) and I know what they deal with on a daily basis. It's much more than just scaling calculus all day. It sounds easy, but there are many aspects of the job that are very challenging and frustrating. Most of the time, I don't think they get the respect they deserve. I'm going into nursing because I want more variety and options with my career. Hygiene just doesn't offer that. I was initially torn between hygiene and nursing, and chose hygiene because I didn't think I could deal with gross bodily functions! After seeing and smelling the equivalent of mouth poop everyday, I think I can probably handle it now, LOL.

Tic Tac, So have you started Nursing school yet? If so, how do you like it?

Dental Hygienist · Nov 18, 2007

There's a lot of changes in the healthcare biz these days and DH's may be pricing themselves out of business. My dentist can't afford to hire them anymore so he does all the teeth cleaning now.

With all due respect; DON"T go to a dentist who does his own cleanings! Most honest dentists will admit that they spent less than 3 weeks really learning how to do "cleanings" while in dental school.

Contrast that with hygienists who spent 2 years learning how to be a hygienist. Plus, a dentist wants to charge more for his time, but the insurance companies won't let him, so the only thing he can do to make up the difference is do it faster meaning that not only does the dentist not really know what he's doing; but he's rushing the job as well.

A qualified hygienist will likely spend 30-45 minutes scaling your teeth while a somewhat unqualified dentist will likely spend 10-20 minutes scalng your teeth; guess who is doing a better job?

A common misconception amongst dental patients is that someone is good because they are fast. I've even had people tell me "My hygienist is SO good she can clean my teeth in 20 minutes" It's not a matter of Good; it's a matter of time. If she's sheduled a patient every 20 minutes, well then she'll get you done in 20 minutes; because she HAS to; end of story.

At my regular job, I spend a full 45-50 minutes with each of my hygiene patients and they get quality, comprehensive care. Sometimes when I temp I am forced into a schedule where I have only 20-30 minutes to spend with a patient and do I get them done on time? Yes, because I HAVE to; But are they getting as good of care as the patient that I spend 45-50 minutes with? Absolutely not. But guess what? Both of those patients are paying the same amount to have their teeth cleaned by me; so WHO do you think is reaping the benefits here? certainly not the patient or the hygienist....