If I Have A Ca Registered Dental Hygienist License Can I Practice In Hawaii?

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When I celebrated my fifth year as a licensed dental hygienist, I had already adept clinically in iv different states. At one point, I was maintaining four agile hygiene licenses, which included paying four different renewal fees, juggling iv different continuing pedagogy requirements, and keeping current on rules and regulations from four different dental boards.

Some of yous may be nodding your caput enthusiastically right at present, empathizing with my journeying and understanding the unspoken struggles that come with a highly mobile lifestyle. Withal, most dental hygienists have not considered what information technology takes to restart i'south career by practicing in a different area of the country. Thanks to advances in engineering science and changes in generational ideals, more than and more than dental hygienists are choosing to uproot their careers and follow opportunities wherever they may lead.

Unfortunately, occupational license portability regulations for dental hygienists have non yet kept up with these changing times.

Have you filled out …?

To help you understand what license portability currently entails, the following is a snapshot of simply some of the tasks country dental boards crave a dental hygienist to complete in order to obtain a license in their state:

Contact the state's dental governing board
Complete a lengthy application with multiple notarized documents
Pay an awarding fee in addition to a biennial licensure fee
Accept a jurisprudence examination via mail or at an official testing center (retake, if necessary)
Acquire sealed transcripts from accredited hygiene school and other post-loftier school education
Provide certification of having passed clinical and national dental hygiene licensure examinations
Request letters of skillful standing from each state in which active licenses are held, including not-dental licenses
Provide proof of current CPR certification through approved providers
Provide proof of mandatory CE courses required for the state
Submit a comprehensive work history, including accost and contact information for all previous employers
Submit multiple grapheme references
Submit a signed and dated passport-sized photo
Provide personal information and supporting documents regarding by or existing medical conditions, citizenship status, student loans, child support, and more
Undergo a criminal background check, which may include fingerprinting
Complete an in-person interview with the dental board
Submit additional fees and documents for whatsoever additional expanded functions (i.due east., restorative duties, local anesthesia, nitrous oxide inhalation, ITR, laser, straight access permits, etc.)
Potentially retake and successfully pass clinical boards^{ane-4, 7}

In my personal journey, this procedure of applying for initial licensure and receiving an active license was oftentimes filled with dread and feet. While waiting anywhere from v months to a year for the process to be completed, I had plenty of time to inquire questions: Why do I have to get a new license even though I am already a successful clinical provider merely across the state line? How long will the application procedure accept this time? What will I do if they don't grant me a license? Is this even worth the headache?

Each relocation was accompanied by a meaning career setback. Quite honestly, I weighed whether it was worth continuing a dental hygiene career. While waiting, I'd begin what would become a futile try at the interview process, knowing I'd be lucky if someone were to hire a hygienist whose license is pending. I oft considered working retail or other low-paying jobs in club to earn some income, no matter how nominal.

Things worked out, though, and I'm happily entering my 15th year in dentistry. In hindsight, I at present fully comprehend how those first five years shaped my professional person identity. Although my nomadic days accept come to an end, I recognize the license portability struggle is still very real for many colleagues.

Trends in Professional Licensure

So, the question remains: Why is occupational license portability an effect in the beginning identify, and how is it changing, if at all?

According to the American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA), professional licensure helps protect the public from unqualified individuals and unsafe exercise.⁸ Similarly, state-based occupational license portability rules were once thought to assist protect the public'south health and prophylactic.

Over the years, interstate compacts between states and model laws take been enacted. These efforts are attempts to diminish the unintended negative effects of these license portability rules. Dental governing bodies have also attempted to alleviate some of the burdens past granting licensure past credentials. Currently, 46 states provide this pathway that allows dental professionals who hold active licenses in other states to obtain a license without having to complete their professional examinations again.^ix

For dental hygienists who are considering obtaining another land's license, the skillful news is that there has been a recent uptick in dialogue among stakeholders and legislators. 1 meaning advancement occurred earlier this year when the governor of Arizona signed a bill to allow the state to get the first to universally recognize out-of-state licenses.⁶ Additionally, a dental licensure compact has recently been proposed, the kickoff of its kind for dentists and dental hygienists.⁵

Only is this enough? Hygienists within social media circles have argued that advancements in license portability for dental hygienists should be a top priority for advancement groups and have chosen for more support from the ADHA and other professional associations.

Cheers to outdated occupational portability laws, dental hygienists who wish to piece of work in another state confront a long and burdensome application process, often leading to unnecessary career setbacks.

Whether or non this direct applies to your career, I urge you lot to bring together the dialogue and abet for continual advancements in this expanse. Brainstorm a word with colleagues in your network and reach out to health coalitions, dental boards, professional associations, and other allies. By working together, nosotros have the ability to improve occupational license portability, advancing our profession not only for ourselves but for dental hygienists everywhere.

References

State Board of Dentistry. Pennsylvania Department of State. Retrieved from https://www.dos.pa.gov/ProfessionalLicensing/BoardsCommissions/Dentistry/Pages/default.aspx
New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs. The State of New Jersey. Retrieved from https://world wide web.njconsumeraffairs.gov/den/Pages/default.aspx
Oregon Lath of Dentistry. Retrieved from https://www.oregon.gov/dentistry/Pages/index.aspx
Minnesota Board of Dentistry. Retrieved from https://mn.gov/boards/dentistry/
Masters, R. Occupational License Portability and the Dental Profession. Admission. July 2019: 16-17. Retrieved from http://pubs.royle.com/publication/?one thousand=21156&l=1#{%22issue_id%22:599806,%22page%22:eighteen}
Nib History for HB2569. Arizona State Legislature. Retrieved from https://apps.azleg.gov/BillStatus/BillOverview/72039
https://www.adha.org/resource-docs/75116_State_Licensure_Credentials_Endorsement_Chart.pdf
https://www.adha.org/licensure
https://www.ada.org/en/education-careers/licensure/licensure-dental-students/licensure-by-credentials