치과위생사의 한국형 전문치과위생사제도 도입에 대한 견해

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the opinions of Korean dental hygienists on the Korean advanced dental hygienist system in Korea. Methods: The survey was conducted on 328 dental hygienists working at dental clinics and hospitals in Seoul, Gyeonggi-do, Incheon, and Chungcheong-do. Collected data were analyzed with the frequency analysis, independent-samples t-test, and one-way analysis of variance after their reliability and validity were verified through the reliability, exploratory factor, and confirmatory factor analyses. Results: Respondents preferred sectoral advanced dental hygienists to integrated advanced dental hygienists, but 47.0% of respondents did not respond to this questionnaire item. To become an advanced dental hygienist, ‘more than 5 years but less than 8 years’ of clinical experience was appropriate according to 45.7% of the respondents and ‘more than 30 h but less than 40 h’ of training period was appropriate according to 25.9% of the respondents. Respondents thought that the duration of the training period for advanced dental hygienists would be directly proportional to expectations from the effect of advanced dental hygienists (p=0.023). Further, respondents who were usually interested in advanced dental hygienists showed higher expectations from the role (p<0.001) and effect (p<0.001) of advanced dental hygienists than those who were not interested. Conclusions: This study suggests various implications of the introduction of the advanced dental hygienist system in Korea.