The Dental Hygiene examination administered by the Southern Regional Testing Agency, Inc., (SRTA) evaluates clinical judgment and performance. The examinations were developed to provide a reliable clinical assessment for use by state boards in making valid licensing decisions. The examination in dental hygiene consists of:

• Presenting a selection of teeth that meets all required criteria
• Detecting all types of dental calculus and recognizing when a surface is free of calculus
• Completing a partial oral prophylaxis while preserving the integrity of surrounding tissue
• Complete a partial periodontal assessment by recording of periodontal pocket depths

A passing grade is 75%.Failure will require re-examination.

The current year SRTA Examination has been developed, administered, and reviewed in accordance with guidelines from the American Dental Association, the American Association of Dental Boards, the American Psychological Association the American Educational Research Association and the National Council on Measurement in Education. In addition, the examination has undergone stringent psychometric review and input from independent firms and Alpine Testing Solutions. The concerns of the students/candidates have been addressed through input from former candidates and dental hygiene program faculty. Input from practicing dental hygienists is collected every five years through a nationwide Task Analysis Survey, which guides all decisions regarding content.

Clinical skills examinations administered by SRTA are conducted anonymously. All examination materials are identified by the candidate's SRTA number (assigned prior to the examination). The candidate's name or school information does not appear on any material. The examiners at all sites are experienced practitioners with diverse backgrounds. The examiners are calibrated and standardized prior to each examination and are evaluated to assure grading to established criteria.

All questions concerning examination procedures, content, applications, and examination dates should be sent to the SRTA corporate office. Email questions regarding the dental hygiene examination to hygieneinfo@srta.org or to generalinfo@srta.org for general questions. Be sure to include contact information.

Once an application has been processed for a particular site, all questions for both pre-examination and postexamination must be initiated by the candidate only. Due to confidentiality, the SRTA staff will not discuss candidate concerns and questions with a spouse, parent, faculty, family member, or friend.

The candidate must procure his/her own patient and is responsible for their arrival and return. SRTA is not responsible for providing patients used in examinations. Candidates must advise patients of the time required to participate in this examination. Patients should expect to be at the testing site for a minimum of four hours.

Case presentation is a scored part of the examination and should be completed independently. It is at the candidate's discretion whether to seek the assistance of faculty or colleagues. Opinions of professionals who are not calibrated to SRTA standards cannot be relied upon to ensure that all criteria are met. Candidates unable to secure a patient will not be eligible for a refund or credit toward a future examination attempt. Appeals based on issues such as patients handling the paperwork or inability to secure a patient will not be considered.

Patient eligibility:

• Must be at least 18 years old
• Cannot be a dentist, dental hygienist, or a dental or dental hygiene student
• May be a dental assistant
• May not have a latex allergy
• May not have received injectable bisphosphonate therapy
• Cannot be a woman in either the first of the third trimester of pregnancy
• Oral herpetic lesions: Patients who present with an oral herpetic lesion will be evaluated by a SRTA dentist serving as the Clinic Floor Coordinator. This dentist does not serve as an examiner but is the liaison between the candidates and the examiners. That dentist will determine if the patient can be safely treated or if the patient will be dismissed as ineligible.

Each patient to be treated must sign a Patient Disclaimer, Consent, and Release Form.

Both the candidate and patient must complete a Post Operative Care Agreement and an Incident Disclaimer form before any clinical procedure may commence. Two copies of the Post Operative Care Agreement, and one copy each of the Incident Disclaimer and the Patient Disclaimer, Consent, and Release forms will be submitted during registration. The patient must also receive a copy of these forms.

The instruments required for the examiner to evaluate case presentation, calculus detection, and calculus removal skills are:

1. Yellow-banded periodontal probe with markings of only 1-2-3-5-7-8-9-10 mm (Williams probe). The probe may be single ended or double ended. However, if providing a double ended probe, the unused end must be covered using autoclave tape. Candidates may use the brand or manufacturer of their choice.
2. ODU or EXD 11/12 explorer for calculus detection and final evaluation of calculus removal. No other type of explorer will be accepted for examiner's use.
3. A reflective front surface mouth mirror. May be one or two sided.
4. All other instruments are the choice of the candidate.
5. Syringes & supplies for anesthetic administration, if needed. The school will supply anesthetic cartridges for candidates. These will also be the choice of the candidate.
6. Candidates must provide or have access to a blood pressure measuring device.