I would like to thank the Va. BOD for their time and consideration in creating the DAII position to better serve the patients in Virginia.

I oppose any and all scaling duties for the newly created DAII.

I have been a hygienist for 21 years, in dentistry for a total of 26 ( five years spent as an dental assistant) and while I am grateful to those who trained me chairside to assist, I can not imagine any of them training me to scale subgingivally only to a depth of 3 mm's!  My education here in Virginia was superb at VCU/MCV, please do not undermind that with allowing DAII's to scale, without also attending the program. 

Economics play an important role in underserved areas.  If time management is a concern, then can you tell me how long it will take a dentist to probe the full mouth ( 6 measurements on every tooth), chart furcations,  bleeding, mobilities and recession to decide if a patient is Type I or Type II-IV?  Will he then save time by turning the patient over to a DAII for scaling?  I believe his time and economics are better spent putting his patient with an educated, board certified and registered hygienist to begin with. 

Please consider the majority when making your decision and always keep the safety of the Virginia public your primary concern.

Again, thank you for your service on the Board of Dentistry.

Regards,

Sheila Hailey-Walters, RDH, BS

Past President of Greater Richmond Dental Hygienists Assoc.