Dental hygienists who are certified to administer local anesthesia (LA) must renew their certification (C) annually during the licence renewal period. Re-certification is required once every five years as part of the Quality Assurance Program (QAP) cycle. More information about certification requirements is available on the Certification to Administer Local Anesthesia webpage.
The Quality Assurance Committee of the former College of Dental Hygienists of BC (CDHBC) previously determined that the most appropriate learning activity for registrants to maintain their LA certification through re-certification is completion of an online module for continued safe practice of LA.
Why was a certification model landed upon for LA?
As part of the Dental Hygienists Regulation and the bylaw updates governing Dental Hygienists which came into effect in March 2020, this certification model replaces the requirement of having a dentist on site in order to administer LA. As the administration of LA is considered a higher risk restricted activity and it is not part of the scope of practice for all Canadian jurisdictions, this model supports the inclusion of LA in the scope of practice in BC while maintaining public safety and confidence. The LA Module supports the College’s mission of protecting the public by ensuring registrants maintain current knowledge of oral local anesthetic and competence to administer it safely. This module fulfills a requirement of College Bylaws.
There is no cost to registrants to complete the LA Module.
Eligibility for CC Credits
Registrants who complete the LA Module can claim three Continuing Competency (CC) credits for the module towards the required 75 credits within their current QAP cycle. To claim CC credits, you must add the LA Module as an activity within your Online Learning Plan (OLP). On the “add an activity” page within your OLP, select “Local Anesthetic Module” within the activity type dropdown menu, then enter three CC credits as the amount.
Requirements to complete the LA Module
Completion of the LA Module once per five-year QAP cycle is required to maintain ongoing LA certification.
- Information about how to obtain LA certification if you don’t have a “C” is available on the website.
LA Module Content
The LA Module is modelled after the Jurisprudence Education Module (JEM). It consists of five sections and is hosted on the same online platform as the JEM. Registrants will work through the module until they receive 100 per cent on each section quiz, which consists of multiple-choice questions. Registrants are given unlimited attempts to successfully complete each quiz. This is a learning-focused module, not an assessment. We expect it will take registrants approximately 3 hours to complete.
Registrants are able to bookmark progress in the LA Module and log back in to complete it on another day. However, if too much time lapses between logins, a registrant’s bookmarked progress may no longer be there.
The objective of the LA Module is to review the foundational knowledge related to LA administration to ensure registrants continue to practice safely and competently, consistent with current practice. The content within the module is not new and covers information that registrants who are certified to administer LA already know. Topics that are covered include pharmacology of various local anaesthetic drugs and vasoconstrictors, maximum recommended dose calculations, injection techniques, and how to document following best-practice guidelines.
The College is committed to providing resources to registrants to improve Indigenous Cultural Safety and Humility (ICS&H) in their practice. Therefore, the LA Module also incorporates aspects of ICS&H. This content may be new to registrants, depending on their knowledge in this area.
