Shaping the Future of Dental Hygiene

Rather than working a typical high school student job, such as babysitting or flipping burgers, as a Philadelphia teenager, Tracye A. Moore, RDH, MS, EdD, went a different route. She shares that her father managed to get her a job as a dental assistant. It was an early career move that apparently rubbed off on her.

“I graduated and matriculated into dental school,” says Moore. She admits, however, to being “derailed” by organic chemistry, at which point, she detoured into dental hygiene, graduating with an Associate of Science in Dental Hygiene and then a Bachelor of Science in Health Science. But she didn’t stop there.

In a recent interview, Moore generously shared some perspectives on her chosen profession.

Q: As a dental hygienist, you’ve worked in a variety of settings. But you went on to earn a Master of Science degree from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, and a Doctorate of Education from Wilmington University in New Castle, Delaware. You are currently chair of the Department of Dental Hygiene at Northern Arizona University (NAU) in Flagstaff. How did this career trajectory come about?

A: I knew the only way I could be a mentor and role model for other African-American dental hygienists in a profession traditionally dominated by white women would be to obtain master’s and doctorate degrees. I then became an educator with the ultimate goal of ‘being the change I wanted to see,’ providing scholarship, stewardship, and sponsorship for other minority dental hygiene students.

Q: The Department of Dental Hygiene at NAU just received a $3.25 million grant under the Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students (SDS) from the US Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) to promote diversity in the health professions. How will these funds be used and how many dental hygiene students will benefit?

A: The HRSA’s SDS grant, which provides scholarships for disadvantaged students over a 5-year period, was written by Denise Helm, RDH, AP, EdD, of the dental hygiene faculty at NAU. Each academic year, dental hygiene students enrolled in the NAU Dental Hygiene program are eligible to receive $10 to $20,000 each if they can prove they have a financial need, are from an underserved background, and/or attended a high school where the majority of the students were recipients of free or reduced lunches. This academic year, 48 NAU dental hygiene students were the recipients of the SDS grant.

Q: As an advocate for diversity and multicultural public health, of which accomplishments are you most proud?

A: Sustaining the tenets of my doctoral dissertation, as chair of the NAU Department of Dental Hygiene, I have increased the recruitment, retention, and graduation of a diverse dental hygiene student population from 22% in 2013 to 52% in 2020. This increase has been a result of a modified department admissions process, grant support for underrepresented students, and a modification of the departmental marketing materials to represent diversity of students, faculty, and staff.

Q: What do you believe are the greatest challenges faced by graduating dental hygiene students in the midst of the pandemic?

Navigating licensure requirements, which vary from state to state; finding an employer who will provide optimal personal protective equipment for employees; and maintaining gainful employment given fearful clients who may not keep their dental appointments.

Q: What do you foresee for the future of dental hygiene in Arizona and across the country?

A: Registered dental hygienists educated and licensed as dental therapists and employed by hospitals and urgent care centers. This will go a long way in addressing dental emergencies, thus eliminating frequent use of hospital emergency departments by patients seeking dental treatment due to the lack of or insufficient dental insurance.