Chicago, June 27: The American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) today released “Advancing Dental Hygiene Education: A Strategic Framework for Developing Differentiated Doctoral Pathways,” a white paper that outlines three doctoral pathways for dental hygiene and positions the profession for parity with nursing, physical therapy and pharmacy, each of which has built out doctoral-level training for advanced practice.
The paper describes an entry-level professional doctorate, a Doctor of Philosophy and a Doctor of Oral Health Practice, each preparing dental hygienists for distinct roles in clinical practice, research and education. ADHA first identified doctoral education as a goal for the profession in 2005, and the white paper updates that work with current curricular models. The framework also responds to a documented shortage of doctoral-prepared faculty in dental hygiene programs. The 2024 ADEA Survey of Allied Dental Program Directors found 150 open faculty positions across 214 programs nationwide.
“Nursing, physical therapy, and pharmacy have all advanced doctoral pathways that support the evolving needs of healthcare. Dental hygiene belongs at that level. As leaders in prevention and patient-centered care, our profession must continue to advance to meet the opportunities and challenges ahead,” said Lancette VanGuilder, ADHA president. “This white paper gives our profession a real framework for getting there. We know what the path looks like because other health professions have already walked it, and this paper presents models that can serve as a foundation for building our own.”
The three pathways come from two proposals published roughly a decade apart. An entry-level professional doctorate and a Doctor of Philosophy were first proposed in 2016, followed by an updated Doctor of Philosophy paired with a new Doctor of Oral Health Practice in 2024. The white paper also draws lessons from nursing, physical therapy and pharmacy, identifying accreditation, policy and professional association advocacy as the forces that drove each profession’s own shift to doctoral-level preparation.
“Dental hygiene is already functioning at a level that warrants doctoral preparation in education, research, leadership, and policy. We’re not proposing something unprecedented, we’re following the same path that nursing, physical therapy, pharmacy, and other health professions have taken as they evolved,” said Leciel K. Bono, lead author and chair of the Department of Dental Hygiene at Idaho State University. “Developing a doctoral degree isn’t about changing the profession, it’s about aligning educational preparation with the level of leadership and expertise that already exists.”
Among its recommendations, the white paper calls on the profession to:
- Standardize curriculum models anchored in the discipline’s core concepts and framework
- Implement and support differentiated doctoral pathways
- Secure institutional commitment to the goals and mission of doctoral education
- Identify funding streams for curriculum design, faculty employment and program development
The white paper was authored by Leciel K. Bono, RDH-ER, MS, EdD, FADHA; Jennifer L. Brame, RDH, BSDH, MS, EdD; Jennifer Cullen, RDH, MPH; and Harold A. Henson, RDH, MEd, PhD, FADHA, and is available for download at adha.org/whitepapers.