Dental Hygiene Education Enters Its Immersive Era With VR

The Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) is positioning itself at the forefront of dental hygiene education with the launch of a dedicated virtual reality (VR) lab at its Dundalk campus. Nearly 70 years after opening its doors, the institution is pairing its longstanding commitment to accessible education with immersive technology typically reserved for doctoral-level dental programs.

With financial backing from the Delta Dental Foundation, CCBC secured 20 Meta Quest VR headsets for dental hygiene students. The software, adapted to United States dental hygiene standards from a platform developed by Gleechi, enables learners to engage in realistic operatory simulations using interactive hand controls. Implementation support from Black Meta Agency ensured the system reflects US clinical environments, instrumentation, and measurement standards.

Brionna Watson, MPA, RDH, director of CCBC’s Dental Hygiene Program and with a passion for strengthening clinical preparedness and advancing student outcomes, recognized a gap in simulation technology for dental hygienists in the US. This led to her collaborating to develop the first immersive VR software designed specifically for dental hygienists in the US. She identified an opportunity to extend simulation-based training, which is already used in dental schools, to dental hygiene students, who traditionally rely on mannequin-based exercises and limited live-patient sessions. Her objective is clear: increase repetition without increasing patient risk.

“At this stage, the platform supports foundational laboratory instruction such as oral anatomy and allows students to engage in simulated clinical scenarios, including infection control and sterilization procedures as well as local anesthesia administration,” Watson notes. “However, VR does not replace hands-on clinical training. Direct patient care remains essential. The technology serves as an additional layer of preparation that strengthens foundational skills before students enter the clinic.”

The pedagogical rationale is grounded in motor learning science: procedural confidence develops through deliberate repetition in low-risk environments. By allowing students to make errors, recalibrate, and refine technique virtually, Watson aims to reduce performance anxiety, particularly in high-stress transitions such as anesthesia coursework.

“By allowing students to practice what they learn in class within immersive simulations, the technology bridges the gap between classroom instruction and clinical practice,” Watson notes.

Beyond skill acquisition, the program’s leadership is focused on improving confidence and reducing anxiety. “The incorporation of VR has the potential to significantly enhance student confidence, comprehension, and clinical precision. One of the most challenging transitions in dental hygiene education is moving from theoretical instruction to treating live patients,” she says. “Immersive simulation allows students to repeatedly practice procedural sequencing, including infection control and sterilization protocols, in a risk-free environment that mirrors clinical expectations. Students have shared that the experience feels like real life and that the system requires them to be thorough, often prompting them to revisit steps before progressing. This structured repetition reinforces attention to detail, strengthens knowledge retention, and helps reduce clinical anxiety.”

Supporting student retention is another component. CCBC admits 40 students each fall and graduation rates hover between 55% and 60%. “Providing an additional structured practice environment may help students strengthen their skills before being evaluated in high-stakes clinical settings. Over time, enhanced preparation and confidence may contribute to reduced course failures and improved completion rates, ultimately, increasing the number of well-prepared graduates entering the workforce at a time when the profession faces workforce shortages,” Watson explains.

Watson’s broader mission is to bridge technology and dental hygiene in ways that elevate the profession, strengthen workforce readiness, and expand access to high quality oral health education and care, but her heart is in public health, prevention, and patient education. She is deeply committed to increasing oral health awareness and expanding access to care within the community. Watson instills in her students the importance of preventive practice, patient advocacy, and compassionate care, ensuring that technological advancement enhances rather than replaces the human connection at the center of dental hygiene.

Whether VR will measurably improve clinical steadiness remains under evaluation. What remains clear is Watson’s dental hygiene students are in good hands.