Professional Development
Professional development activities are an important part of job performance and quality assurance. Major
benefits
range from increased quality of care for your clients, to increased employment opportunities and job
satisfaction
for you.
Note: All professional development must meet the requirements of your provincial regulatory body and, in
many provinces,
a post-examination is required as part of the learning. It is your professional responsibility to ensure
that
the professional development opportunities you select will meet the requirements of your
regulatory
body.
Professional Development Opportunities
Workshops and Conferences—CDHA offers
workshops
on a variety of topics in locations across Canada. The biennial
conference
takes place on the odd years and, on the even years, CDHA hosts a leadership summit and professional
development session in conjunction with the Annual General Meeting.
Professional
associations host workshops and annual or bi-annual conferences which provide opportunities
for networking and professional development. There are also in-person events offered by commercial
organizations
such as
rdhu and
CE Solutions. Explore more
on CDHA’s
Oral
Health Events Calendar.
Online Courses and Webinars—CDHA provides members with exclusive online
courses,
webinars, and
exclusive pricing for
Dental
Hygiene Quarterly
. In addition, many
provincial
dental hygienists' associations provide similar offerings periodically for their members. You
could also look to industry or commercial organizations for online learning and even universities and
colleges
for on-campus, distance, or online education.
Links that may be of interest:
Publications—Some provinces recognize the study of, or submission to, dental hygiene
publications in
their quality assurance program. The
Canadian
Journal of Dental Hygiene (CJDH)
, the official peer-reviewed research journal of the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association, has
current and
several years of archived issues online.
Dimensions of Dental Hygiene
, a US publication, has articles with quiz questions that may be of interest.
Study Groups—These are typically local groups of dental hygienists who get together. You
may wish to
contact your
provincial
association to find out about groups that may be meeting in your area.
Professional Development Requirements
Each province has different rules concerning the types of professional development activities that are
eligible for
use towards your continuing competency requirements (education courses, advanced study, study of
professional
journals, convention attendance, professional meetings, etc.) and how credit is calculated for each activity
(hour-for-hour credit, credits per activity, credit as recommended, goal based learning etc.).
It is recommended that you keep records of all professional education activities, including certificates of
completion,
transcripts, and receipts. The general rule is to keep yearly records. Keep the proof of completion with a
copy
of the form and/or documents you send to the regulatory authority, as well as the proof of receipt sent by
the
regulatory authority, if provided.
Check out your requirements by visiting the website of your
provincial
regulatory authority.