Course Description
Under the regulation 8 (1) (g), all dental hygienists who apply to be registered and licensed with the College of Dental
Hygienists of Nova Scotia (CDHNS) must successfully demonstrate their knowledge of dental hygiene practice in Nova
Scotia.There are two courses that allow dental hygienists to do so; the completion of one will meet the requirement:
either the Knowledge of Dental Hygiene Practice in Nova Scotia: Jurisprudence course (JP) or the Self-Initiation Course
for Nova Scotia (SI), the latter of which includes the JP content. If you successfully complete the SI course for Nova
Scotia, you are not required to complete this separate JP course.
If you have started to complete the CDHNS checklist for applicants, you will have noticed the course requirements for
registration and licensure. To determine which of the two courses is most appropriate for you, consult with CDHNS prior
to making your course selection. Upon successful completion of either course, you must submit a copy of the certificate
of completion with your application to the college.
The Knowledge of Dental Hygiene Practice in Nova Scotia: Jurisprudence course will ensure you have comprehensive
knowledge of the regulations and the legal framework of dental hygiene practice in Nova Scotia. The course emphasizes
the most important areas of this framework and its supporting documents, including contraindications to care, standards
of practice, and record keeping.
The course deals with the legal framework or jurisprudence that governs the practice of dental hygiene in Nova Scotia.
Some of the most important documents such as the Dental Hygienists Act of Nova Scotia, 2007, and the accompanying
Regulations are reviewed. It includes information on the CDHNS Best Practices for Self-Initiation document, which
outlines all contraindications to self-initiating scaling and root planing, including curetting surrounding tissue,
according to the Regulations. The course will also assist you in understanding the use of “Schedule A—Suggested Protocol
for Authorizing Dental Hygienist to Perform Procedures.” Knowledge of the contraindications to self-initiation of dental
hygiene care will help you make a professional judgement about whether to consult, refer or postpone treatment. The
requirements of informed consent and record keeping are also considered.
More Course Information
Course Information
Registration for the course is done online, and the course is taken online in the comfort of your home, at your
convenience and your pace. You may pause and restart at any time. It is expected that the course will take about 5 hours
to complete, but you may take as much time as you need, with the exception of the final examination. You may wish to
break up your learning into several shorter sessions.
A resource manual has been developed for the course. It can be downloaded and printed as a complement to the course
content. It is a valuable tool with learning outcomes, pre-tests, learning activities, summaries, post-tests, and
suggested additional resources such as links to websites. While the learning activities are not a comprehensive
assessment of all learning outcomes, they do highlight critical areas. It is important that you complete the learning
activities as they have been designed to contribute to the knowledge required to self-initiate dental hygiene care and
pass the final examination.
The required textbook for this course is:
- Bowen DM, Pieren JA. Darby and Walsh dental hygiene: theory and practice. 5th ed. Maryland Heights: Elsevier; 2020.
The fifth edition may be ordered online at www.elsevier.com or at www.amazon.ca. There is also a list of resources and
reference materials (print and electronic) in the resource manual. Please note that the use of earlier editions is not
advised as you will be tested on the content in the fifth edition. References cited in the resource manual of this
course direct you to pages in the fifth edition.
A pre-test is presented at the beginning of each section and a post-test at the end of each section. A final, timed
multiple-choice examination is administered upon completion of the course. Upon successful completion of the
examination, a certificate of completion issued by CDHA may be printed from your computer.
Relevance to Practice
The ability to practise dental hygiene competently and ethically in a variety of settings applies to all dental
hygienists who practise or plan to practise in the province of Nova Scotia. Successful completion of this course
provides the evidence required by CDHNS to show your knowledge of dental hygiene practice in Nova Scotia. Your
examination result confirms a level of knowledge, skill, and judgement about dental hygiene practice in the province
according to the jurisprudence or legal framework in the Nova Scotia Dental Hygienists Act, Regulations, and other
applicable documents as discussed throughout the course.
Course Developers
The original course was developed in 2008–2009 by several individuals who, at the time of development, were active
within the dental hygiene profession. Patricia Grant, an original course developer, was also instrumental in updating
this 2020 revised course content.
Patricia Grant
At the time of original course development, Patricia Grant had been an assistant professor for many years in the School
of Dental Hygiene at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, where she taught in the newly established degree
program. In 2009, Patricia became the first registrar for the newly formed College of Dental Hygienists of Nova Scotia,
a position she held until 2017.
Original Developers
Sharon Cavanagh, Diane Landry, Sandra Lawlor, Brenda Leggett, Sue MacIntosh, Laura Myers, Lisa Taylor, and Maria Elena
Tigner.