Vanessa Johnson graduated from UBC Dentistry’s dental hygiene program in 2020 and returned to do a PhD with Dr. Leeann Donnelly.

What inspired you to go into research?

A few different experiences led me to research. In my fourth year of the dental hygiene program, we did community rotations. I learned a lot about oral health disparities in marginalized populations and how to work with them, which was truly a transformational experience.

I also spent one summer studying the prevalence of dental providers and physicians in northern and rural communities in BC. A physician from a remote community had reached out to UBC Dentistry’s Dr. Donnelly and Dr. Mathu-Muju because he was seeing high rates of dental disease and wanted to support his community.

We created a research project looking at how many dental providers there were in the area—it turns out there were about three times fewer dental professionals than there were physicians—and how physicians could potentially make a difference in rural oral health disparities. I reviewed existing data, which showed that physicians and nurses in the United States were doing oral health promotion and prevention in areas with a shortage of oral healthcare professionals.

I got to present this research at a conference, and that’s where I really caught the research bug—it was the first time I saw what it was truly like to be a researcher. I realized that research can affect policy, which in turn can significantly impact society.

I graduated in 2020 and went into clinical practice but always kept in touch with Dr. Donnelly, and started my graduate studies shortly after.

What is the focus of your PhD project?

My project began during the global pandemic. The dental hygiene program works closely with marginalized populations who have barriers to accessing oral healthcare. I started by studying how the pandemic had impacted their experience in accessing this care.

Through this work, I discovered that these community members were having an exceptionally hard time accessing oral healthcare, and that many were left with questions like how to sign up for dental benefits. We developed an oral health helpline and ran it as a pilot project for two years. Anyone could call the helpline and a UBC dental hygiene student or I would pick up the phone and answer their questions.

The next part of the project, which I’m currently working on, is talking to students and faculty about potentially integrating the helpline into the education curriculum.

How will this oral health helpline make a difference?

I hope it will make it easier for underserved populations to navigate the oral healthcare system and be a direct source of information for them. A helpline like this is fairly new to BC; we have telehealth for pharmacy, nursing, and physicians, but nothing quite like it for oral healthcare.

I also hope it will help students better understand barriers these populations face so they can graduate from school better equipped to help everyone in their communities.