As the year draws to a close, it is a good opportunity to reflect on the state of our profession and our path forward in the coming year. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the ongoing challenges we are facing both within the profession, regarding the regulation and delivery of oral health care services, as well as in the much broader areas of public health practices and norms. However, this is also the time to focus on our unity of purpose and prepare all oral health care professionals to face the challenges of our evolving health care environment. Each one of us, regardless of whether we are in clinical practice, education, public health, research or in the corporate world, has the power to make positive change on a daily basis. The key is to identify that power and use it, whether it is to educate patients, identify disease, provide preventive care or, as a rising researcher, provide new evidence to inform policy or changes in clinical practice. The power lies in each one of us and our widely diverse professional roles.
The purpose of the Journal of Dental Hygiene is to support scientific inquiry in all phases of research. The JDH is the scholarly, peer reviewed publication of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA) and is the only peer-reviewed research publication in the United States that is exclusively for the dental hygiene profession. With that, we have a responsibility to support the scientific processes that will ultimately impact the profession - be it in clinical outcomes, public health, dental hygiene education or ongoing professional development.
Over the past year we have published over thirty original research articles on topics ranging from practitioners’ beliefs regarding vaccinations and professional responsibility to advances and challenges in cancer care and the influence of artificial intelligence on dental hygiene. Our special issue in June focused on motivational interviewing in dental hygiene practice and its impact on periodontal disease outcomes, caries prevention and nutrition. Guest editorials and commentaries looked at topics that included advances and challenges in pediatric oral health to ageism and dental hygiene. We also introduced brief author videos explaining key elements of their research and its significance to dental hygiene practice and we have continued to feature short reports focused on research methodology.
Promoting the scientific inquiry process and the research that will ultimately influence dental hygiene education and practice, requires the ongoing commitment of the leaders in the profession. We are indebted to the ADHA Board of Directors for continuing to value the importance of scholarly work and a research publication along with the work of Dr. JoAnn Gurenlian, Director of Education, Research and Advocacy, and Bronwyn Barrera, Director of Marketing and Communications. With their ongoing support, the JDH’s visibility and influence continues to grow.
Behind every research publication are the peer reviewers, the experts across the discipline who share their expertise with the manuscript authors. I would like to give special thanks to all of our many reviewers this past year. Your time and constructive feedback are critical to the scholarly process, and we all grow as a result of your contributions. I would also like to acknowledge the JDH Editorial Advisory Board for their unique perspectives on the issues facing the profession and the role of the journal.
I want to acknowledge the many authors who have submitted manuscripts this past year. Regardless of the outcome of your submission, your commitment to scientific inquiry and the research process is commendable. Continue to collaborate with your colleagues and mentors to add to the body of knowledge that will ultimately provide the basis for dental hygiene practice.
The JDH will soon celebrate its 100th year as a publication of the ADHA. Back in 1926 when faced with publishing the association’s news and information in existing dental magazine, the ADHA Board of Directors decided that publishing their own journal would be the most effective way to accomplish the newly formed organization’s objectives. What began as a means to maintain editorial independence has grown over the past 100 years and has advanced the dental hygiene profession through rigorous research and scholarly work. Just one more example of the power of us!
- Copyright © 2025 The American Dental Hygienists’ Association
This article is open access and may not be copied, distributed or modified without written permission from the American Dental Hygienists’ Association.
