The first states to train dental therapists were Tasmania and South Australia in 1966 and 1967 repectively with the first graduating cohort of dental therapists commencing practice in 1969. Other states and territories followed suit and commenced their own health department training courses for dental therapists to provide services in similar working enviroments. Dental therapists are celebrating this year 40 years of serving South Australian school children and young adults. Some are now treating second and may soon treat a third generation within some families.

 

 

 

The history of the training and utilisation of dental auxiliary personnel dates back to early 20th century when the then President of the New Zealnd Dental Association (NZDA) Dr Norman K. Cox in 1913 acknowledged the need for a series of school dental clinics operated by what he termed 'oral hygenists' to address the extraordinarily high dental caries rates amongst children (Satur 2003). Dental authorities in New Zealnd were at first opposed to the idea but by the end of the decade the 'school dental nurse' became operational. In 1920 mobile and school based clinics in New Zealand were developed and staff provided diagnostic, preventive and restorative treatment services to school children in need of urgent dental care. In the 1960's this role was more clearly defined as a dental therapist (Dunning 1972). 

 

Since then, oral health care professionals other than dentists have been utilised around the world to provide primary and varying degrees of restorative dental care to a range of populations. Termed as either an 'oral hygienist' a 'dental dresser', a 'dental nurse', a 'dental therapist' or an 'oral health therapist', these skilled allied oral health care workers were and are still, entrusted to provide dental care for high risk and underserved subgroups within our communities (Satur 2003).

 

After observing the success of the New Zealand dental therapy program and its school dental service, the role of the dental therapist was quickly adopted by the Unite Kingdom followed by other countries around the world such as Canada, South Africa, Netherlands, Fiji, Hong Kong, Philippines and Malayasia. In the year 2000, twenty eight countries around the world were training and utilising dental therapists (FDI 2001). In 2007, Malaysia had almost the same number of dental therapists in the workforce as dentists (Nash et al, 2008). To date the number of countries utilising dental therapists has nearly doubled to fifty three (Nash et al, 2008). In some of these nations, the number of practising dental therapists recorded is greater than the number of practising dentists.