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Iowa board cites teacher for unsupervised dental clinics

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March 19th, 2015 by Ric Hanson

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – A citation has been upheld against a dental hygiene professor at Iowa Western Community College for allowing students to perform dental work unsupervised.
The Daily Nonpareil reports that dental hygiene students performed several services, including applying fluoride varnishes, without the supervision of a licensed dentist as part of Family Inc.’s I-Smile program, which offers free clinics at schools and other sites across Pottawattamie and Mills counties.

The professor was fined $75 on Feb. 25 by the Iowa Dental Board. The professor has an active license with the dental board, and is in good standing, according to the board’s online database. A spokesman for Iowa Western’s Dental Hygiene Program said that the school inadvertently did not follow a standard in the Iowa Dental Code, and has taken steps to make sure that their clinical activities follow the standards of the dental profession.