What is an operating auxiliary? Legal status, training and utilization

This paper describes present trends in the training and utilization of dental auxiliaries in the United States of America and examines the situation in the State of California in greater detail. Ninety-one per cent of al single-handed practitioners in the USA employ a dental assistant and 45 per cent employ a hygienist. Almost one-third of American dentists employ four or more auxiliary personnel. Because of increasing competition from other more remunerative forms of employment and a fall in the number of young people of the appropriate age group, there has been a decline in the enrollment in dental auxiliary education programs. In the early part of the past decade there was government pressure to secure an increased use of expanded function dental auxiliaries as a means of limiting the cost of dental care. However, there is evidence that as a result of overproduction of dental graduates the utilization of auxiliaries may decline in coming years. At present, five categories of dental auxiliary are recognized in California, namely, the dental assistant, registered dental assistant (RDA), registered dental assistant in extended functions (RDAEF), registered dental hygienist (RDH) and registered dental hygienist in extended functions (RDHEF).