Hygienist and Therapist Services

At the Bridges Dental Surgery we pride ourselves on providing preventative hygiene therapy to our patients. From the practices’ early days we have always employed a Dental Hygienist as part of our care team as we find the care they provide vitally important to our patients oral health.

Good daily oral hygiene at home is the key to keeping your teeth and gums healthy. Along with regularly visiting the dentist we also strongly recommend visiting our dental hygienist for professional teeth cleaning. Hygienists can remove the plaque and tartar which cannot be tackled at home, thus preventing the onset of gingivitis and gum disease.

• Dental hygienists primarily deal with your ‘preventive’ dental health and treating gum disease – showing you correct home care and helping you to keep your teeth and gums healthy
• This includes professionally cleaning your teeth by removing plaque and tartar (usually called a ‘scale and polish’).
• Their most important role is showing you the best way to keep your teeth free of plaque.
• Hygienists also give advice about diet and about preventing tooth decay. The hygienist will work with your dental team to give you the care that is tailored to your needs.
• Cosmetic Scaling and Polishing can also remove surface tooth staining which can give a brighter, whiter smile.
• They can check all surfaces of your mouth – teeth, gums and all soft tissues – for signs of oral cancer.

For a number of years, at the The Bridges Dental Therapists have been an integral part of our care team. This directly feeds in to the new Modern vision for Dentistry where we have a ‘skill mix’ of clinicians all providing the treatment they are best suited to carry out.

Dental Therapists are registered dental professionals who carry out certain items of dental treatment as prescribed by dentist, and on behalf of the dentist. Which mean that as well as doing all the work that a dental hygienist does, a dental therapist can also carry out some dental procedures that patients are more used to a dentist doing.

• Carry out white and silver fillings on adults and children, under local anaesthetic if required.
• Take x-rays of teeth.
• Carry out a wide range of treatment on children’s teeth, including taking teeth out.
• Carry out tooth whitening, including impressions, and general cleaning of teeth.
• Dental Therapists do not carry out a patient’s initial examination where any treatment needs will be decided.
• They do not do treatments, such as crowns, and root canal fillings on adult teeth.