Certificate Program for RDHs Earns Prestigious ANSI Accreditation

National Network of Healthcare Hygienists is the leading organization dedicated to offering accredited certificate programs to RDHs in specialty areas of medicine. Through its innovative programs and collaborative initiatives, NNHH is committed to making it easy for hygienists with specialized knowledge to share their expertise with each other, advancing the entire profession. NNHH also partners with individuals and organizations to fast-track offering accredited certificate programs to RDHs. Three new programs are slated to launch in 2025.

Grand Rapids, MI — August 15, 2024 — National Network of Healthcare Hygienists (NNHH) is proud to announce that their groundbreaking Oral Systemic Educator Certificate Program has been officially accredited by ANSI National Accreditation Board (ANAB), the largest multi-disciplinary accreditation body in the western hemisphere, marking it as the first dental certificate program in the world to receive such recognition. Designed to empower registered dental hygienists (RDH) with knowledge and practical skills, the program emphasizes the role of the RDH as a collaborative care team member in healthcare systems. The Oral Systemic Educator Certificate Program has now met or exceeded the standards set forth by the Academy of General Dentistry’s Program Approval for Continuing Education (AGD PACE) through a joint providership with UpScale Education, as well as the global standards of ASTM E2659-18 for certificate programs through ANAB. NNHH has raised the bar on continuing education in dental hygiene (and in all of dentistry), as well as created new career pathways for RDHs.

“The accreditation of our Oral Systemic Educator Certificate Program is not just a milestone for us, but a giant leap forward for the entire healthcare industry, addressing a workforce gap,” said Jamie Dooley, founder of National Network of Healthcare Hygienists. “This recognition validates our commitment to preparing RDHs to work in integrated settings and sets a new global standard for specialty certificate programs in dentistry.”

With the increasing recognition of the link between oral health and systemic diseases, the need for specialized education in this area has never been more critical. NNHHs accredited program addresses this gap, offering RDHs the opportunity to become certificate holders in oral systemic education, filtering unbiased, unsponsored, research-based data and protocols to practicing hygienists, while also becoming key team players in true patient centered care. “Many people do not know that RDHs are comparable to RNs in education level, continuing education requirements, and licensing. We are educated, passionate healthcare providers, who are experts in assessing oral health, preventing oral-systemic disease, and educating both providers and patients on the latest techniques, products and research,” Dooley stated.

Brianne Carter is an RDH and Certificate Holder of Oral Systemic Education (CH-OSE). While completing her Capstone Project, she developed an integrative pilot program offering oral health education and referrals in her system’s women’s clinic. The results were so successful that she was promoted to dental director and now supervises a team of integrated RDHs working in multiple specialty clinics system wide. The first thing she does is enroll them in the Oral Systemic Educator Certificate Program. “Ideally, every specialty medical office should have at least one integrated RDH (I-RDH) trained in oral-systemic health and education available to assess, educate, refer to a dental home, and follow up, as well as educate and collaborate with medical teams for true health equity that finally includes oral health…we are proud to be on the leading edge of this model in action,” Carter said.

**For more information**

Visit https://healthcarehygienists.org or email certificates@healthcarehygienists.org for more information.

 

 

 

 

 

Jamie Dooley RDH BIS
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