The Professionalisation of Dental Hygienists and Dental Therapists in Academia: Reflections on an ADEE Community of Practice Event

INTRODUCTION: Dental hygienists (DH) and dental therapists (DTh) are increasingly prominent within dental academia, yet their pathways remain less clearly defined and consistently supported than those available to dentist academics. This commentary reflects on an ADEE Community of Practice (CoP) event held in August 2025, exploring the professionalisation of this workforce within higher education, drawing on Wenger-Trayner's CoP framework to position professional identity as constructed through collective participation and shared experiences. AIMS AND FOCUS: The commentary examines how an ADEE CoP contributes to the professionalisation of DH and DTh academics, with particular focus on visibility, scholarly identity, research engagement, mentorship, leadership development and emotional experience. FINDINGS: Twenty-three participants took part, drawn from the UK, Ireland, Belgium, Denmark, Lithuania, Malta, Sweden, the USA and Australia; the majority reported more than 15 years in dental education. Role portfolios extended well beyond teaching to encompass research, leadership, mentorship and external examining, directly challenging the assumption that DH and DTh contributions in universities are primarily teaching-focused. Mentimeter responses showed that while most participants described a clear pathway to professorship in their institution, four did not or were unsure, and six reported having no formal faculty mentorship. Small-group discussion converged on four cross-cutting themes: (i) securing parity of esteem with dentist academic colleagues; (ii) unlocking protected time for research and doctoral study; (iii) building visible role models and structured, cross-institutional mentorship; and (iv) recognising the emotional labour of building a scholarly identity within dentistry-dominated departments. Descriptors ranged from 'proud', 'exciting' and 'encouraged' to 'roadblocks' and 'challenging but doable', reflecting both progress and continuing structural constraint. CONCLUSION: DH and DTh academics at this CoP are already functioning as teachers, researchers, leaders and external examiners, yet sustainable professionalisation is being held back by uneven career pathways, limited protected research time, patchy mentorship and unrecognised emotional labour. We conclude with three specific commitments: (i) ADEE should sustain the DH/DTh CoP as a standing forum with a formal international mentorship strand; (ii) dental schools should publish transparent DH/DTh promotion criteria mirroring those available to dentist academics, with protected scholarly time; and (iii) DH/DTh academics should be supported to lead and co-author scholarship, positioning themselves as visible role models for the next generation.