Hygiene Production Goals: How Hygienists Can Improve Care and Practice Profitability

In honor of Hygienist Appreciation Month, I wanted to create a series dedicated to you, the hygienists who are at the heart of comprehensive patient care. We’ll cover perio charting, health history, hygiene goals, and more. But I want to start this series with something essential: your role in the financial health of the practice and how it ties directly to the quality of care you provide.

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Why Hygiene Matters More Than Ever

Dentistry is facing tighter margins than ever before. Supply costs, lab fees, and equipment prices are climbing. Salaries have increased 8 to 16 percent across the country, including for hygienists. Yet reimbursement rates from insurance companies are flat, or in some states, even declining.

This reality means we cannot ignore production goals. To keep practices profitable (and able to provide raises, benefits, and job security), every member of the team has to be mindful of how we contribute. For hygienists, this doesn’t mean “pushing production.” It means recognizing that your work is both lifesaving for patients and essential for keeping the practice sustainable.

What Your Hygiene Production Goal Should Be

So what should a hygienist aim for? A good benchmark is producing three times your total compensation.

Total compensation is not just your hourly wage. It includes benefits like healthcare, 401(k), scrubs, continuing education, or even allowances for loupes. For example, if your total compensation is about $80 per hour, your production goal should be around $210 per hour.

That goal might sound intimidating, but it becomes achievable when you focus on a mix of services instead of only providing prophys all day.

The Power of a Balanced Mix of Services

If you are only doing one-hour prophys at $100 each, you won’t reach your production goal, and more importantly, you may not be delivering the comprehensive care your patients truly need.

Here’s what to consider instead:

• X-rays and Imaging: Order them based on clinical necessity, not just insurance timelines. Comprehensive imaging helps you provide better care and supports the production balance.
• Fluoride Treatments: Adult fluoride can reduce sensitivity, protect against recession, and provide long-term oral health benefits.
• Periodontal Services: With over 50 percent of Americans showing signs of periodontal disease, the opportunity to diagnose and treat perio is enormous. Yet in most practices, only 5–20 percent of hygiene production is perio-related. That number should be much higher.
• Adjunctive Services: Consider sealants, whitening, night guard impressions, or even patient education about products like Sonicare toothbrushes and water flossers. These not only benefit patients but also help you stay on track with your production goals.

Shifting the Mindset: It’s About Care and Profitability

I know some hygienists feel uneasy when they hear “production goals.” It can sound like the practice is prioritizing money over patients. But that is not the case. A financially healthy practice is what allows dentists to provide competitive pay, health insurance, retirement benefits, and continuing education opportunities.

And beyond profitability, the bigger picture is this: your role as a hygienist directly affects systemic health. Periodontal disease has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, and other systemic conditions. By diagnosing and treating perio, offering fluoride, and recommending comprehensive services, you are protecting more than just teeth; you are impacting whole-body health.

How to Put This Into Action

Here are three practical steps you can take immediately:

1. Review Your Schedule: Look ahead at the next few weeks. Are most of your appointments prophys? Where can you introduce other services to create a more balanced schedule?
2. Calculate Your Perio Percentage: Use tools like the perio calculator worksheet from Rachel Wall at Inspired Hygiene to determine how much perio care is actually happening in your practice.
3. Leverage Dentrix Tools: Set up daily hygiene goals in Dentrix so you can track your progress visually throughout the day.

Final Thought

You are not just “cleaning teeth.” You are a vital part of keeping the practice profitable, ensuring your patients get comprehensive care, and protecting their overall health. By thinking beyond prophys and embracing a mix of services, you elevate both patient outcomes and the sustainability of the practice.

This is just the beginning of our hygienist-focused series, and I look forward to walking alongside you on your journey to becoming part of a truly high-performing dental team.