A Study on the Sense of Professionalism and Career for Students of Department of Dental Hygiene by Grade

치위생과 재학생들의 학년별 직업의식 및 진로인식에 대한 연구

As the level of the national income has been improved and the whole nation health insurance project has been spread, medical demand for dental health is also increasing. To cope with the increased medical demand, the need of dental health education and preventive dental care is recognized, and the number of dental hygienists is being increased with increase in dental clinics and hospitals. While more weight is actually given to treatment than prevention in hospitals, emphasis is placed on prevention in public health centers of state-run organizations and dental hygienists are performing the duty. According to this, dental hygienists shall be treated and recognized as professionals, who instruct people in dental health and assist the dentists in hospitals. Therefore to suggest vision to the students of department of dental hygiene, give them a solid motive, and inspire them with professional sense so that they can devote themselves to their duty with pride and self-confidence in the field can lead to contribution to dental health of each individual and the whole nation, in order to train them to be dental hygienists who are active and strive for change and development as professionals and capable of adapting themselves to the field of dental medicine. In this study, the professional sense and the recognition of the way of students belonging to department of dental hygiene were examined and based on this, a new direction for department of dental hygiene of three-year college was suggested.