Responses to Frequently Asked ADHA Membership Questions
Listed below are responses to frequently asked
questions about membership in the American Dental Hygienists’ Association.
1. What are the benefits of membership?
Security—Through ADHA membership, you
will help to secure a future for dental hygiene. ADHA is working to protect the
value of your educational credentials and to preserve the integrity of your
license. Only through uniting in one voice can ADHA continue to represent dental
hygienists successfully.
Access to Information—Members receive a
subscription to the Journal of Dental Hygiene, ADHA’s official publication that
brings you scientific and technical articles on clinical practice, research, and
education. In addition, members receive the association’s magazine, Access, that
helps you stay on top of the issues that are critical to the dental hygiene
profession.
Continuing Education— ADHA membership
offers you a discount on continuing education through self-study courses,
courses the ADHA offers at annual session, and constituent and component
continuing education events.
Employment Assistance— Members benefit
from state employment job referral services, national classified advertising,
and employment reference materials. ADHA is your professional partner, supplying
you with foreign employment contacts, information on state licensing
authorities, lists of accredited dental hygiene programs, and details on
research grants and scholarships.
Professional Contacts—As part of your
dues, you automatically become a member of your state constituent and local
component organizations. These groups sponsor meetings and activities for your
personal and professional benefit. By attending local, state, and national
membership functions, you have the opportunity to form new friendships and
develop professional contacts.
Insurance—Your membership will provide
you with the opportunity to apply for various types of insurance—professional
liability, disability, and major medical—at competitive premiums.
ADHA Credit Card Program—Offers members
competitive interest rates and the opportunity to earn points toward travel with
every purchase when combined with the mileage program. The program also offers
members financial planning tools.
Leadership Opportunities—Becoming active
in ADHA gives you the opportunity to acquire and develop new skills and
interests, such as leadership and public speaking.
Recognition—You can make contributions to
your community’s oral health standards through professional activities with your
local association. Professional membership builds an identity for you and the
dental hygiene field. You can also become a role model for recruiting candidates
into the dental hygiene profession.
Discounted Hotel Rates—Members may take
advantage of discounted hotel rates at over 4,000 hotels across the
nation.
2. I can’t afford the dues.
- How can you afford not to be a member when
dental hygiene is facing a professional crisis and legislative tactics that
allow on-the-job-trained dental assistants to perform dental hygiene functions
that are threatening the value of the RDH credential and the future of dental
hygiene?
- How would you be able to afford ADHA’s many
benefits and services purchased separately?
- After all the time and hard work you’ve put into
your career, doesn’t $4.62 a week (or 66 cents a day) seem like a small
investment to protect your future and improve the quality of oral health care
for the public, which is part of the dental hygienist’s professional commitment?
3. I don’t have the time. What is expected of me if I
join?
- A member is expected to adhere to ADHA’s
Principles of Ethics and Bylaws, and members are counted upon to support the
mission and goals set forth by the ADHA.
- The benefits of membership are limited only by
your involvement. The value placed on your career goes hand-in-hand with the
value placed on membership in your professional association.
- You are not required to actively participate in
ADHA. In today’s fast paced world, not all members are able to do so. Some
members are only able to support ADHA and the dental hygiene profession by
contributing through membership dues.
- Becoming active in ADHA can give you the
opportunity to acquire and develop new skills and interests, such as leadership,
public speaking, etc.
- No state makes it mandatory to belong to ADHA in
order to hold a dental hygiene license; however, it is beneficial to become a
member of ADHA so that you will be informed on the issues that affect you and
your profession.
4. I only want the publications. Can I just get
those?
- Considering what the subscriptions cost versus
the cost of membership dues, it is more advantageous for you to join ADHA as an
active member because you will receive a subscription to both publications, as
well as have access to all other benefits offered. A subscription to Access is
$48 a year (10 issues) and a subscription to the Journal of Dental Hygiene is
$45 a year (4 issues) for nonmembers.
5. Can I join only the state and local
organizations?
- No. According to ADHA bylaws (voted upon by the
house of delegates), tripartite membership is required of members. That means
that members must belong to their national, constituent, and component (if one
exists) associations. Annual dues pay for membership in all three organizations.
6. What does ADHA do for me?
In addition to
all the benefits listed above, ADHA works to expand the dental hygiene scope of
practice, and increase the number of dental hygiene career options in addition
to working in a private dental office. For example:
- In 46 states, dental hygienists may provide
services under general supervision in some settings.
- In 14 states, dental hygienists may provide
services in certain settings under various forms of unsupervised practice and
less restrictive supervision.
- In 31 states, dental hygienists can administer
local anesthesia.