Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy BSc(Hons)
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What is a Dental Hygienist and Dental Therapist?
Dental Hygienists and Dental Therapists undertake many of the treatments that general dentists undertake and will work as part of the multi-disciplinary dental team. They can either work anonymously seeing patients directly or under the prescription of a dentist.
A Dental Hygienists role is primarily based on prevention of oral diseases, including examinations, indices, fluoride treatments and fissure sealants, as well as the treatment of gum diseases.
A Dental Therapists role includes everything that a Dental Hygienist can do but also includes Restorations, composite bonding (if further training has been undertaken) primary tooth pulp treatment, primary tooth extractions, primary tooth crowns.
About the course
Our Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy BSc(Hons) course will provide you with the knowledge and skills required for clinical practice, whilst also supporting you to develop empathic awareness and the communication skills needed for patient-centred care.
Through this course we will prepare you to put your skills and abilities into practice after qualification, both through reflecting on the evidence from ongoing research and your own practice. Throughout the course you will be supported to become a competent and effective Dental Hygienist and Dental Therapist, ready to work in various settings.
As the regulatory body for dental professionals, this course is mapped to the General Dental Council's (GDC) Safe Practitioner Framework, so you’ll have the clinical and academic skills to be a registered professional with the GDC as a Dental Hygienist and Dental Therapist.
Why study Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy at Huddersfield?
- Clinical placements and community-based opportunities – through our collaboration with a local community dental service, Locala, and a developing relationship with Leeds Dental Institute, you’ll have clinical placements or community opportunities in all years of study within the local area.
- Taught by professionals – you’ll be taught in a supportive environment where you can thrive, by experienced dental clinicians who are registered with the General Dental Council (GDC).
- Inter-professional opportunities – you’ll collaborate with a wide community of healthcare students at the University’s National Health Innovation Campus. You’ll learn about and with practitioners from a range of health and social care professions, such as nurses and midwives, paramedics, physiotherapists, social workers, operation department practitioners and occupational therapists. These collaborations will enable you to develop an in-depth understanding of person-centred care and patient pathways.
- New purpose-built Dental Hygiene and Dental Therapy facilities – our specialist clinical teaching facilities and state-of-the-art simulation technology will enable you to learn in a safe, but realistic environment utilising phantom heads. You’ll also provide care to patients in the new onsite Dental clinic.
Future careers
The course is vocational and leads directly to becoming a registered Dental Hygienist and Dental Therapist. Considering the wide range of treatments that Dental Hygienists and Dental Therapists can provide, your expert knowledge would position you ready to work in the field of dentistry.
There are many opportunities for employment within Primary, secondary or tertiary care, such as NHS or private practice, community, hospital, or prison service, as well as being employed within the armed forces as a civilian.