A Guest Services Partner Story: The Registered Dental Hygienist

A Guest Services Partner Story: The Registered Dental Hygienist

Example of someone who would both thrive and grow in this position:

Eve has passion for a well-rounded life; she wants to be a good mom, wife, and have a meaningful career to support her family. Eve prefers to arrange her work schedule to be off on Wednesdays so she can have one day a week to have coffee with friends, visit her parents, run errands, and do any personal hobbies which refresh her. On the other workdays she likes to come in after dropping her kids off at school and works Monday evenings as her contribution to the dental office seeing patients after typical hours (which also earns her some extra funds). Because she has flexibility and a voice in her schedule, she feels respected and valued, assured of consistent income and work hours, allowing her to plan family vacations and pay the bills, handle household and family obligations, and either throttle up or down on her career as she wants.

Throughout her day, Eve works independently as she prepares her treatment room for patient appointments, performs dental cleanings, and then sanitizes her treatment room, refilling supplies for the next patient. She enjoys seeing her patients and hearing what updates in their lives they wish to share with her, as she has served many of them for years. She’s built a trusting bond between them, knowing what their goals are for their smile, and recommends only treatment or care suggestions as she believes would benefit them and their goals.

To combat fatigue and stay fueled, Eve likes to regularly block a half hour break after her first two appointments of her 8-hour shift, grabbing a bite to eat while responding to a few texts and catching up on the news of the day. Eve also works collaboratively with the rest of her clinical and administrative team by reviewing patient x-rays and treatment needs with the doctors, helping dental assistants with sterilization of equipment and ordering supplies, and addressing any patient information updates or scheduling needs with the receptionists. She and her clinical teammates have forged such a great bond that they try to meet once a month outside of work for a fun and relaxing dinner.

Eve can see the results of her hard work, commitment to excellence, and gentle touch through the fact that many patients leave her wonderful reviews and request to see her again, which keeps her schedule consistently full. Eve meets with her department leader several times throughout the year to keep her hygiene skills sharp and grow professionally, reflecting on how she is performing and receiving mentorship on where she can improve.

Last year, Eve asked to spearhead a project for updating hygiene process documents. After the project’s completion, she received recognition from management and her team for her results in not only finding ways to be more efficient in several processes, but also for documenting the revised processes with training videos.

To satisfy Eve’s desire to make a positive difference in her community, she delights in volunteering twice a year at the in-house free dental days where she can provide care to those who truly need it.

If this sounds like an experience you’d want to have, check out some of the characteristics and skills you need for the job.

Skills Required

• Outgoing personality with a sense of humor, able to ease anxiety and create a calm patient atmosphere
• Strong relationship builder who enjoys patient education and connecting people with solutions to improve oral and overall health
• Open to feedback and continuously seeking to expand knowledge, improve technical skills, and grow professionally and personally
• Committed to a high standard of care focused on patient comfort, privacy, oral health goals, sterile technique, well-stocked operatories, and efficient workflow
• Contributes to a positive team culture by collaborating with staff, recognizing achievements, and showing appreciation and encouragement

Experience, Certifications & Licenses Required

• State of Michigan Registered Dental Hygienist License
• Excellent opportunity for both a recent hygiene program graduate or seasoned hygienist

Other Details

• Full-Time (32+ hours/week) or Part-Time (<32 hours/week)
• Flexible schedule; no holidays or weekends
• CPR Certification, Local Anesthetic/Nitrous Oxide License preferred
• Travel may be required for continuing education seminars, but is not frequent
• Benefits include Health Insurance and 401(k) Contributions (Full-Time Only), In-House Dental Care Program, Pro-Rated Paid Vacation and Sick Time, Shift Differential, Sign-On and Referral Bonuses

Company: The John Fornetti Dental Center

Our office is “guest-centric”, committed to remarkable patient satisfaction. We live and work by a set of core values including gratitude and vitality, honesty and positivity, stewardship and genuine compassion. Our team is full of gardeners, hikers, readers, bakers, artists, and animal lovers; we are family people, fun people, happy people. It’s not “just a job” to us.

We fulfill our purpose every day by providing relief to those living in pain, fear, or low self-confidence. “Smiles are what we are all about”; it’s why we do what we do every day.