Lifelong education & the ADAA: is all continuing education created equally?

Dental assisting professionals are faced with the challenge of choosing continuing education (CE) programs that are effective learning experiences and can also assist them in maintaining knowledge and competence to meet professional standards and expectations. Some research suggests that digital (online) multimedia and self-study learning can be as effective and retentive as traditional classroom learning.

ADAA is proud to announce the enhancement of our website for e-commerce, which will allow us to sell Continuing Education online and allow you, the member, access to top-notch Continuing Education programs any time, any where and at your convenience.

It has been predicted that the future of dental CE is the Internet. However, where will you turn and how will you choose which CE program to buy that will meet your needs? Can you assume that any and all CE credits you earn from anywhere and at any time will be accepted and help you meet relicensure requirements? Although there are no nationally mandated CE requirements, most state dental boards outline their conditions for continued licensure within their practice acts, state laws, and/or rules governing the practice of dentistry. So how can the savvy dental assistant choose carefully with the plethora of CE opportunities out there today?

You've got questions ... and ADAA's Education Department has answers. To help increase the likelihood that what you select will satisfy your needs, we've put together a four-step process when making decisions for CE.

A Four-Step Process for Evaluating CE

STEP 1--Programs offered are interesting and current and proven information.

Continuing Education courses should be offered in subjects that appeal to what you want to learn. Adults learn best when they have an opportunity to define for themselves what it is they want to learn, as well as what is needed in the industry.

The CE course should be up to date with the current standards of today. An example would be current CDC recommendations of standard precautions in infectious disease transmission rather than universal precautions; or current/new dental insurance codes rather than discontinued codes no longer accepted. Continuing Education courses should be updated and held accountable for maintaining those current standards through regularly scheduled review of materials. ADAA CE courses undergo this type of review every three years by an expert in the field, and those courses no longer current are discontinued.

STEP 2--Programs meet state requirements.

Go online to your state's Board of Dentistry website and review its criteria and CE requirements. Be sure that you're signing up for and receiving credits in areas that you need. Check limits for the number of credits that can be received in a given subject area and if your state board accepts any and all CE providers. Some states list only certain providers that will be accepted as credit for renewal of your credential(s) while other states require that CE must be approved by ADA's CERP program or AGD's PACE program. These two programs (CERP and PACE) were developed to evaluate and identify quality continuing dental education for the dental profession. If a course receives approval from either of these two evaluating programs, then it has adhered to 14 to 15 standard aspects of program quality.

The Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) is another organization that specifically approves CE and requires certain specifications be followed as described in the DANB Recertification Guidelines. All ADAA courses are approved for Continuing Education credits by DANB and AGD's PACE program that evaluates the education process used in designing, planning and implementing the CE.

STEP 3--Clearly defined learning objectives and proven information.

Learning objectives for CE programs should be clearly outlined so that professionals know going into a course what they should gain by the end of it. Course content should have evidence of its validity (i.e., research-based support). Every ADAA course has specific learning objectives, a glossary of terms and references, and a brief description of the contents of the course. Most ADAA courses also offer a post-test of exam questions to help the professional focus on the key points of the course.

STEP 4--Solid and reputable credentials of writers and honest disclosure.

Course writers should be experienced with the use of materials and/or techniques being taught and actually have done some clinical work or field research in the subject matter of the course being presented. Writers need to be appropriately qualified to teach dental assistants and hold additional credentials or specialty training or peer-reviewed expertise.

In addition, there should not be a conflict of interest between a material, technique or device and a company and the writer. The instruction should be an independent view. ADAA carefully evaluates a writer's curriculum vitae, expertise in a designated field, and then a very specific course of action is followed. The ADAA Council on Education follows specific written guidelines and the prospective course is reviewed by several of the eight-member Council for content, organization, grammar, punctuation, graphics and clarity.

By Ronda Lane, BS, CDA, RDA 

Ronda Lane, CDA, RDA, Irving, Texas, has served the ADAA as president of the Texas Dental Assistants Association, and as president of her local component, the Dallas County Dental Assistants Society, where she implemented several community projects. She has participated in the development of the infection control examination required by the Texas Board of Dental Examiners for Registered Dental Assistants. She is currently Ninth District Trustee.