Dental Hygiene Program
Physical Guidelines for Students
Students must be able to do:1. STRENGTH:Perform physical activities requiring ability to push/pull objects/persons more than 50 pounds and possess hand-arm strength to control manual and power hand instruments and tools.2. MANUAL DEXTERITY:Perform complex motor skills such as writing, typing; manipulative skills with fine instruments and devices, calibration of equipment. Have not impairment of the use of a foot, let, hand, fingers, or arm, and no other structural defect of limitation, which may interfere with the ability to control and safely operate medical/dental devices and instruments.3. COORDINATION:Perform body coordination such as walking, filing, retrieving equipment; eye-hand coordination and arm-hand steadiness (i.e., use of hand instruments, taking blood pressures, calibration of instruments and equipment).4. MOBILITY:Perform mobility skills such as walking, standing, prolonged standing or sitting in occasionally uncomfortable positions or very small spaces (i.e., 2 feet by 4 feet spaces).5. VISUAL ABILITY:See objects far away, very close, and to discriminate fine detail and colors, and to see objects closely as in reading faces, dials, monitors, etc.6. HEARING:Hear normal sounds with background noise and to distinguish sounds (i.e., pulse with sphygmomanometer, percussion of teeth, TMJ - temporomandibular joint - clicking/popping).7. TACTILE ABILITY:Demonstrate tactile abilities sufficient to make physical assessments of soft and hard tissues (i.e., perform palpation, functions of physical assessments and oral examinations, functions related to therapeutic intervention).8. CONCENTRATION:Concentrate on details with moderate amount of interruptions (i.e., patient and co-worker requests, alarms, equipment noise).9. ATTENTION SPAN:Attend to task/functions that require up to 60 minutes in length and handle a variety of tasks for periods up to 8 hours. No mental, nervous, organic or functional disease or psychiatric disorder likely to interfere with the ability to coordinate treatment planning; work with other health care professionals and patients; coordinate treatment procedures; and safely operate medical/dental devices and instruments.10. CONCEPTUALIZATION:Understand and relate to specific ideas, concepts, and theories generated and simultaneously discussed and implemented. Apply theory to a clinical situation.11. MEMORY:Remember task/assignments given to self and others over both short and long periods of time (i.e., information gathered in assessing patients).12. CRITICAL THINKING:Ability critical thinking ability sufficient for clinical judgment Identify cause-effect relationships in clinical situations and develop and implement treatment/care plans.13. INTERPERSONAL:Demonstrate interpersonal abilities to Interact with individuals, families, and groups from a variety of social, emotional, cultural, and intellectual backgrounds. Establish rapport with patients and colleagues.14. COMMUNICATION:Communicate sufficiently for interaction with others in verbal and written form. Explain treatment procedures, initiate health teaching, document, and interpret health care actions and patient responses.15. SUBSTANCE ABUSE:No current clinical diagnosis of alcoholism and must not use Schedule 1 drugs or other substances such as amphetamines, narcotics, or any other habit-forming drug except those substances or drugs prescribed by a licensed medical practitioner who is familiar with the individual's medical history and assigned duties and who has advised the individual that the prescribed substance or drug will not adversely affect the individual's ability to safely practice these health professions.16. STRESS:Work with patients who may be very young or old, critically ill or injured, or mentally or physically deficient/impaired; work with a constantly changing group of staff and resident physicians, medical students, etc.Environmental Conditions:Upon acceptance into the program students will be required to complete a mandatory on-line OSHA Blood-Borne Pathogen and Universal Precautions training program. |
