Dental Hygienist Resume Example
Professional resume template and tips for Dental Hygienist positions
Embark on a rewarding career as a dental hygienist, where you will provide essential patient care and directly impact oral health. This guide details the core daily tasks you’ll perform, from patient assessments to using key technologies like Dentrix and digital radiology software. You’ll also discover the critical soft skills, such as active listening and critical thinking, that employers value, along with the foundational knowledge in medicine and customer service needed to excel. Use this overview of responsibilities, required skills, and expert resume tips to confidently prepare your application and build a stronger resume with Mokaru.
SEAN EVANS
Professional Summary
Licensed Dental Hygienist with 5+ years of experience providing preventive patient care in private practice settings. Achieved a 95% patient recall compliance rate through effective education. Proficient in Dentrix for clinical charting and leveraging patient history reviews for tailored treatment plans.
Skills
Experience
- Led training for 5 junior hygienists on advanced periodontal probing techniques using dental imaging software, improving team diagnostic accuracy by 20%
- Designed and implemented a new patient education protocol using critical thinking and Microsoft Word, increasing preventive care plan acceptance by 35%
- Spearheaded the clinic-wide transition to Henry Schein Dentrix, streamlining clinical records and improving appointment efficiency by 15 minutes per patient
- Owned the digital radiology software calibration and maintenance project, ensuring 100% compliance with safety standards and reducing retake rates by 18%
- Collaborated with 3 dentists to develop a targeted hygiene recall program using Excel tracking, boosting patient retention by 25% over six months
- Applied social perceptiveness to tailor oral health coaching for diverse patient populations, leading to a 40% improvement in reported patient compliance
- Mastered dental charting software to accurately record and review medical histories for 20+ patients daily, ensuring complete and compliant documentation
- Supported senior staff by proactively preparing instruments and materials, enabling the team to maintain a tight schedule and serve 10% more patients
- Executed thorough teeth cleanings and preliminary exams using probes and critical thinking, consistently identifying early signs of gum disease for dentist review
Education
Certificates
- Certified Dental Hygienist (CDH)
- Local Anesthesia Certification
- Nitrous Oxide Sedation Certification
Build Your Dental Hygienist Resume
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What does a Dental Hygienist do?
A Dental Hygienist performs various tasks on a daily basis. Here are the core responsibilities you can expect in this role:
- Record and review patient medical histories.
- Feel and visually examine gums for sores and signs of disease.
- Examine gums, using probes, to locate periodontal recessed gums and signs of gum disease.
- Clean calcareous deposits, accretions, and stains from teeth and beneath margins of gums, using dental instruments.
- Provide clinical services or health education to improve and maintain the oral health of patients or the general public.
What skills do you need as a Dental Hygienist?
Employers hiring for Dental Hygienist positions look for candidates with a strong combination of technical and soft skills. Here are the most important skills to highlight on your resume:
What knowledge areas are important for a Dental Hygienist?
Beyond skills and tools, employers value candidates with deep knowledge in these areas. Consider highlighting relevant coursework, certifications, or experience:
How do I write a great Dental Hygienist resume?
Creating an effective Dental Hygienist resume requires focusing on what employers in the Healthcare sector value most.
Use relevant keywords
ATS systems scan for specific terms. Include these keywords naturally throughout your resume:
Quantify your impact
When describing how you "record and review patient medical histories", include metrics like percentages, team sizes, budgets, or project scope to demonstrate real results.
Showcase technical proficiency
Highlight hands-on experience with Henry Schein Dentrix, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel and any medicine and dentistry certifications that validate your expertise.
Match the experience level
For Dental Hygienist roles, employers typically expect usually requires trade school, apprenticeship, or 2-year degree. Highlight matching qualifications prominently at the top of your resume.
Example bullet points
Here are some strong bullet points you could adapt for your Dental Hygienist resume:
- Led training for 5 junior hygienists on advanced periodontal probing techniques using dental imaging software, improving team diagnostic accuracy by 20%
- Designed and implemented a new patient education protocol using critical thinking and Microsoft Word, increasing preventive care plan acceptance by 35%
- Spearheaded the clinic-wide transition to Henry Schein Dentrix, streamlining clinical records and improving appointment efficiency by 15 minutes per patient
How to use AI to improve your Dental Hygienist resume
AI tools like ChatGPT can be incredibly helpful when crafting your Dental Hygienist resume. They can help you brainstorm achievements, rephrase bullet points for impact, identify missing keywords, and tailor your content to specific job descriptions.
However, AI is not perfect. Always proofread the output carefully. AI can sometimes make factual errors, use generic language, or miss the nuances of your specific experience. Think of AI as a helpful assistant, not a replacement for your own judgment.
AI Resume Prompt
You are a senior recruiter with 15+ years of experience in technical hiring and resume optimization. You have reviewed thousands of resumes for Dental Hygienist positions and know exactly what hiring managers and ATS systems look for.
Your task:
Analyze my resume for a Dental Hygienist position and provide concrete, actionable feedback to maximize my chances.
Job description:
[paste the job description here]
Provide feedback on the following:
- Match analysis: Which requirements from the job description ARE and ARE NOT reflected in my resume?
- Quantification: Which bullet points lack concrete numbers/metrics? Provide examples of how I can rewrite them.
- Keywords: Which technical terms from the job description (such as Henry Schein Dentrix, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, etc.) are missing or could be more prominent?
- Impact statements: Rewrite my 3 weakest bullet points using the STAR format (Situation, Task, Action, Result)
- ATS optimization: What adjustments will increase my score in Applicant Tracking Systems?
- Priorities: Give me a top-5 of changes that will make the biggest difference, ranked by impact.
Be direct and critical - I want honest feedback, not compliments.
Why use Mokaru instead? At Mokaru, we have invested extensive research into our AI prompts and continuously update them based on recruiter feedback and ATS testing. Our AI resume builder handles the complexity for you: optimizing for ATS systems, matching job descriptions, and ensuring professional formatting, so you can focus on landing interviews.
Dental Hygienist Resume Example
Looking for a Dental Hygienist resume instead? The skills and experience are very similar to a Dental Hygienist. Here is an example you can use as inspiration:
ADAM BENNETT
Summary
Licensed Dental Hygienist with 5+ years of experience providing preventive patient care in private practice settings. Achieved a 95% patient recall compliance rate through effective education. Proficient in Dentrix for clinical charting and leveraging patient history reviews for tailored treatment plans.
Skills
Experience
- Led training for 5 junior hygienists on advanced periodontal probing techniques using dental imaging software, improving team diagnostic accuracy by 20%
- Designed and implemented a new patient education protocol using critical thinking and Microsoft Word, increasing preventive care plan acceptance by 35%
- Spearheaded the clinic-wide transition to Henry Schein Dentrix, streamlining clinical records and improving appointment efficiency by 15 minutes per patient
- Owned the digital radiology software calibration and maintenance project, ensuring 100% compliance with safety standards and reducing retake rates by 18%
- Collaborated with 3 dentists to develop a targeted hygiene recall program using Excel tracking, boosting patient retention by 25% over six months
- Applied social perceptiveness to tailor oral health coaching for diverse patient populations, leading to a 40% improvement in reported patient compliance
- Mastered dental charting software to accurately record and review medical histories for 20+ patients daily, ensuring complete and compliant documentation
- Supported senior staff by proactively preparing instruments and materials, enabling the team to maintain a tight schedule and serve 10% more patients
- Executed thorough teeth cleanings and preliminary exams using probes and critical thinking, consistently identifying early signs of gum disease for dentist review
Education
Certifications
- Certified Dental Hygienist (CDH)
- Local Anesthesia Certification
- Nitrous Oxide Sedation Certification
Build Your Dental Hygienist Resume
Create a professional, ATS-optimized resume tailored for Dental Hygienist positions in minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
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