The first cohort of dental hygienist/therapists who have completed the BSc Oral Health Science at the newly chartered University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) received their degrees at a graduation ceremony held in Inverness on 30 September.

At a reception held at the Centre for Health Science, Inverness, prior to the graduation ceremony, Miss Margie Taylor, Chief Dental Officer for Scotland, presented prizes to the students. The Student of the Year Award was awarded to Mrs Melanie Carson. The Clinical Prize and School Medal were awarded to Eva Tkacova, and the Tutors' prize was awarded to Mrs Siobhan Coffield.

The first graduates will provide a substantial increase in numbers of dental hygienist/therapists in the UK, and the entire group has found employment, from Shetland – where one of the graduates will work within the Salaried Dental Service – to Southampton, where another has been accepted into the Oxford Deanery DHT Vocational Training Scheme. Several of the graduates are working in the Highlands, one has joined a dental practice in Ayrshire, and another has moved on to postgraduate studies while working with her partner in London.

The UHI BSc Oral Health Science was set up to address the training needs of dental hygienists and therapists in the rural areas of Scotland. In a joint programme involving UHI, NHS Education Scotland and the NHS Health Boards in Highland, Western Isles and Dumfries and Galloway, the school provides training in a three year degree course using teaching sites at the Inverness Dental Centre, the Dumfries Dental Centre and the Western Isles Dental Centre in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis. This has encouraged school leavers to pursue a career in dental hygiene and therapy in the remote and rural areas of the country, and allows students from these rural areas to access university level education closer to home.