Tips for Finding a Great Dental Hygiene Clinical Board Patient

My sister in law has been a dental hygienist for over 12 years. She’s had kids, moved to a different state and different country in the time, and they’ve now settled in California. She’s ready to get back into the hygiene world and work clinically in her town. But because it has been a bit since she’s taken WREB, she’s back at it again this month. With taking the test comes finding a patient. I’ve been teaching students and assessing patients for the exam for years, but being back in the spot of actually finding a patient has been tricky and is taking me back for when I took the exam, both a few years ago and when I graduated! Here are a few tips and tricks for finding a great patient over the years that we’ve been using to find the perfect patient.

1. Post about the exam and your need for a patient on local Facebook Groups. However, once you post it, many times they’ll be deleted in a short amount of time, depending on the group. Once you post it, watch your post to see who responds or messages, and get the conversation going right away. If not, the post may be deleted, and you’ll miss who responded. Also, keep an eye on your “other” message folder to see if anything messages you but it gets hidden.

2. Get your prescreening questions ready. When talking to a potential patient, make sure you ask a few screening questions beforehand to make sure they’ll qualify for the exam. Here are a few I like to ask: Are you allergic to anything? Any medical conditions such as heart disease or diabetes? Are you available on (insert test date)? Do your gums bleed when you brush (don’t include flossing. It’s pretty common for people’s gingiva to bleed if they rarely floss. If they’re a regular brusher with no bleeding, however, they may not qualify for the exam). 

3. Ask other students, past students, or your senior who graduated the year before you for a recommendation. They may have a great lead or two you could follow up with. Sometimes the patient they used didn’t get the rest of their mouth treated and it may qualify, or the patient has a family member or friend to refer to you.

4. Reach out to surrounding offices. Sometimes, these offices have patients come in that qualify and cannot afford periodontal therapy. If they have someone like you to refer them to, it would definitely help both you and the patient.

5. Don’t get overwhelmed. I know, this is the least helpful advice. But for some reason, when someone puts in the work, it all works out! I’ve had student’s patients end up in jail the week before their exam, patients that go into early labor before, patients that have gone completely MIA. And for some reason, it all works out how it is meant to be.

6. There may not be a “perfect” patient. I know, this article is supposed to be all about that. However, sometimes someone that doesn’t seem “perfect” may work and it’ll all work out! Even if you have to treat quad 1 (my least favorite) or you have to treat a few teeth from a different quad, you can do it! You’ve been getting ready for this test for years as a new grad or as a seasoned hygienist

How did you find your board patient? What are some of your tips to finding a great patient for your clinical exam?

Once you found a patient and if you’re still feeling a bit nervous, check out our eBook “Tips for Passing Clinical Boards”. We’ll walk you through some processes to help make the exam less stressful.