Happy Anniversary to the Journal of Dental Hygiene!

Historical Perspectives

While I was editor, I had the opportunity to view every issue of the Journal beginning with its very first issue published in 1927. I can remember sitting in a conference room in Chicago at the American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) headquarters and being in awe of the body of work our profession has accomplished. The first manuscript written in the Journal was authored by a dental hygienist, Ethel Covington, and was titled, “The Dental Hygienist in the Making.” Covington wrote, “In 1923, our American Dental Hygienists’ Association was organized with a membership of about one hundred of the eleven hundred dental hygienists then in the United States. And it is not surprising that at the beginning of 1927, with a membership of about four hundred in our American Association, we should so strongly feel the need of communication between all American hygienists that the Journal of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association has been launched.” She went on to write, “As an auxiliary branch of dentistry, having limited field of service, we may be compared to any specialized group with the same grave danger of knowing too little about the things to which our work is related.”¹ It was amazing to note that from the very beginning these first dental hygienists recognized our unique body of knowledge and the need to be the recognized experts in our discipline.

The early issues of the Journal were for the primary purpose of information sharing. Imagine a time without computers, email, internet, or artificial intelligence! The Journal was the only way to share professional content with a large number of dental hygienists spread across the United States. However, in today’s world of electronic communication and social media, ADHA now has a multitude of options for information sharing. The JDH has become ADHA’s peer-reviewed research publication, supporting the development and dissemination of the unique dental hygiene body of knowledge through scientific inquiry. Manuscripts accepted for publication in the JDH must demonstrate that they support ADHA’s National Dental Hygiene Research Agenda in basic, behavioral, clinical and translational research.

The Journal has had several names over the past 100 years. At its inception, it was called the Journal of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association, then simply, Dental Hygiene. However, the publication has been called the Journal of Dental Hygiene (JDH) since 1988 and remains so today. Along the way, ADHA had a companion publication, Educational Directions, in addition to the JDH with a special focus on curriculum, administration, teaching methods and professional development. Content from Educational Directions was later merged into the JDH under the category of Critical Issues in Dental Hygiene Education. Manuscript submissions and research topics in the JDH have varied over the years, indicative of the issues of the times. The 1980s brought articles on clinical application while the 1990s focused on dental hygiene assessment and treatment planning, HIV/AIDS, pain control, pit and fissure sealants, special populations, alternative practice settings, and independent practice. More recently, topics have focused on mid-level providers, COVID-19, evidence-based practice, workforce issues, musculoskeletal disorders, oral-systemic disease, caries risk assessment, and the impact of artificial intelligence. Throughout the years, the JDH has remained focused on publishing the most current, evidence-based scientific research to inform the profession and support exceptional patient care.

Advancements and Challenges to Original Research Submissions

Prior to the 1960s fewer than 10% of the articles published in the Journal were research manuscripts. That all changed when the first Master of Science in Dental Hygiene graduate program was established at Columbia University in 1960.² At that time, approximately one-third of the curriculum was devoted to research, including how to plan, conduct and ultimately publish one’s work.³ Two other graduate programs opened in 1965, launching advanced education in dental hygiene and teaching the necessary research and publication skills. As master’s degree programs continued to require research and publication, the numbers of submissions to the Journal increased. Several graduate programs in dental hygiene continue to require original research with subsequent submission to a peer reviewed publication. All of these changes have been fertile ground for high quality and timely research submissions to the JDH. Students in graduate programs, as well as faculty with tenure track appointments or personal research interests, have been major contributors to the JDH over the years. Dental Hygiene Research Conferences spanning from 1982-2017 as well as the establishment of the National Center for Dental Hygiene Research and Practice in 1993 brought recognition to the profession and a place for dental hygiene research to be recognized and supported. Many pivotal papers and conference proceedings were published in the JDH due to the excellent work produced through the Center.

The JDH has faced challenges over the years but has always been able to overcome these obstacles and grow in the process. The number of issues per year has varied from a high of nine to four per year. These changes were reflective of national trends and economic challenges impacting the profession. For example, in the 1980s and 1990s, several prominent baccalaureate and master’s degree programs closed. Many faculty members also lost their positions, thus impacting the number of submissions to the JDH and ultimately the number of issues per year. Another challenge was the pure economics of publishing and mailing a print version of the JDH to all ADHA members and subscribers. The JDH was an early adopter of an entirely digital format beginning in 2004. While the JDH was a leader as an online research publication, submissions decreased initially due to the novel format. However, the ADHA was steadfast in supporting the scholarly work of the JDH and was able to encourage authors and academic institutions to embrace the new format, one that is now the norm in the publishing world. The JDH has been publishing bimonthly since 2013 and all electronically published issues dating back to 2004 are available on the JDH website.

The JDH has had several noteworthy achievements over the years. In 1989, under the leadership of Editor in Chief, Olga Ibsen, the JDH was the recipient of the Golden Scroll Award from the International College of Dentists for the most improvement in a dental professional journal. In 1994, the JDH was included in the Index to Dental Literature and Medline, the vast biomedical database from the National Library of Medicine that is enabled by the public search engine PubMed. Becoming an indexed journal allowed manuscripts published in the JDH to be included in the larger body of dental and life science research literature. The JDH is also included in the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health (CINAHL), a comprehensive database for journals and other materials in nursing, biomedicine and allied health fields.

The JDH has been successful due to relentless leadership, mentoring and ongoing support of the ADHA as it has worked tirelessly to establish a unique “body of knowledge” for the dental hygiene discipline. Through every iteration of the Journal, many people have been responsible for its success. To date, there have been seventeen editors spanning over 100 years. None of them could have accomplished the work of leading a successful publication without the support of the ADHA leadership, dedicated staff, and the members of the editorial review board. The JDH Editorial Review Board Members are experienced researchers and authors who help guide the direction of the JDH while also serving as peer reviewers and content experts. They, along with the reviewers at large, are committed to maintaining the integrity of the peer review process of JDH as well as providing constructive feedback and mentoring to authors and researchers. Their time and expertise are invaluable to the scholarly process of a research publication and we all benefit from their generous contributions.

Future Directions of the JDH

The next century of publication for the JDH looks full of promise. Recent additions to the publication have included short report articles on the research process ranging from sampling methods, survey research and qualitative study methodology. Manuscripts accepted for publication must now include three implications for dental hygiene practice linking the research findings to clinical practice. Another new feature to the JDH website and the electronic publishing platform is the research author videos, two-to-three-minute recordings from the lead author describing the purpose and importance of their study along with the outcomes. This feature puts a face and a voice behind the research, increasing interest in reading the full study. The JDH will continue to scan the critical issues facing the profession to solicit submissions that support the key areas of the National Dental Hygiene Research Agenda of professional development, client level and population level research.

As we start the centennial year, look for special features in each issue to celebrate where we have come from and where the profession is going in the next 100 years. Stay tuned for some fun on social media as well. The centennial of the JDH is not just a celebration of one publication but of the entire profession and the collaborative spirit that strengthens all of health care!