Registered Dental Hygienist (RDH)

Job Description

Job Description

Description:

Position Summary

The Registered Dental Hygienist delivers high-quality preventive and periodontal care that supports both individual patient health and overall practice performance. This role serves patients through comprehensive clinical hygiene services, thorough oral health assessments, and patient education that drives long-term care compliance and behavior change. The core purpose is to provide clinically excellent hygiene care, accurately diagnose and treat periodontal conditions, and build lasting patient relationships that support retention, strong reappointment rates, and a thriving hygiene program.

Core Responsibilities

RDH: Fully licensed; independently executes all hygiene clinical functions within state scope of practice.

Clinical Care & Assessment

• Perform comprehensive hygiene services including prophylaxis, scaling and root planing, periodontal maintenance, and adjunctive therapies consistent with state-authorized scope.
• Conduct thorough periodontal assessments, including full-mouth probing, charting, and radiographic review, and document clinical findings accurately in the patient's record.
• Diagnose periodontal conditions, develop appropriate care recommendations, and collaborate with the provider to ensure continuity of treatment.
• Take and interpret diagnostic radiographs in accordance with state regulations and practice-established protocols.
• Adhere to infection control, OSHA, and HIPAA requirements consistently and without exception.

Patient Education & Case Acceptance

• Educate patients on oral health conditions, disease progression, and home care techniques in a way that drives understanding, commitment, and case acceptance.
• Reinforce provider diagnoses and actively support the patient in accepting and scheduling recommended treatment.
• Build long-term patient relationships that support retention, reappointment compliance, and a consistently positive patient experience.

Schedule Performance & Documentation

• Maintain an efficient, productive appointment schedule with minimal downtime, appropriate appointment sequencing, and strong reappointment conversion.
• Document all services, findings, patient communications, and consent accurately and in compliance with regulatory and practice standards.
• This role has no direct supervisory responsibility. The RDH is expected to collaborate professionally with all clinical team members and support a cohesive, high-performing hygiene department.

Education & Qualifications

Required Experience

• 0-2 years of clinical hygiene experience; new graduates with strong clinical fundamentals are welcome.
• Demonstrated ability to meet baseline productivity, periodontal diagnosis, patient education, and reappointment standards.

Required Education

• Associate degree or higher in Dental Hygiene from an accredited program.

Required Licensure & Certifications

• Active Registered Dental Hygienist license in good standing in the state of practice.
• State-required radiation safety certification and current CPR/BLS certification.

Preferred:

• Experience with periodontal programming, SRP case management, and adjunct service delivery (e.g., local anesthesia, fluoride varnish, antimicrobial therapy).
• Proficiency in dental practice management software.
• Strong patient communication skills with a track record of high reappointment and retention performance.