Idaho Administrative Code
Title IDAPA 24 - Occupational and Professional Licenses, Division of
Rule 24.31.01 - RULES OF THE IDAHO STATE BOARD OF DENTISTRY
Section 24.31.01.200 - PRACTICE STANDARDS

01. Dental Hygienists - Practice. Dental hygienists are authorized under the supervision of a licensed dentist to perform dental hygiene services for which they are educated and trained unless prohibited by these rules.

02. Dental Hygienists - Prohibited Practice.

03. Dental Assistants - Practice. Dental assistants are authorized to perform dental services for which they are trained unless prohibited by these rules. Dental assistants must be directly supervised by a dentist when performing intraoral procedures except when providing palliative care as directed by the supervising dentist.

04. Dental Therapists - Practice. Dental therapists are authorized to perform activities specified by the supervising dentist who practices in the same practice setting in conformity with a written collaborative practice agreement at the supervision levels set forth in the agreement.

05. Dental Therapists - Prohibited Practice.

06. Limitation of Practice. No dentist may announce or otherwise hold himself out to the public as a specialist unless he has been issued a specialty license. Any individual granted a specialty license must limit his practice to the specialty(s) in which he is licensed.

07. Specialty Advertising. The specialty advertising rules are intended to allow the public to be informed about dental specialties and to require appropriate disclosures to avoid misperceptions on the part of the public. An advertisement may not state that a licensee is a specialist unless the licensee has been granted a license in that specialty area of dental practice by the Board. A licensee who has not been granted a specialty license by the Board may advertise as being qualified in a recognized specialty area of dental practice so long as each such advertisement, regardless of form, contains a prominent, clearly worded disclaimer that the licensee is "licensed as a general dentist". A licensee may not advertise as being a specialist in or as specializing in any area of dental practice which is not a Board recognized and licensed specialty area unless the advertisement, regardless of form, contains a prominent, clearly worded disclaimer that the advertised area of dental practice is not recognized as a specialty area of dental practice by the Idaho Board of Dentistry. Any disclaimer in a written advertisement shall be in the same font style and size as that in the listing of the specialty area.

08. Patient Records. A record must be maintained for each person receiving dental services, regardless of whether any fee is charged. Records must be in the form of an acronym such as "PARQ" (Procedure, Alternatives, Risks and Questions) or "SOAP" (Subjective Objective Assessment Plan) or their equivalent. Patient records must be maintained for no less than seven (7) years from the date of last entry unless: the patient requests the records be transferred to another dentist who will maintain the records, the dentist gives the records to the patient, or the dentist transfers the dentist's practice to another dentist who will maintain the records.

09. Infection Control. Licensees and dental assistants must comply with current CDC infection control guidelines related to personal protective equipment, instrument sterilization, sterilizing device testing, disinfection of non-critical and clinical contact surfaces, and contaminated waste disposal. Heat sterilizing devices must be tested each calendar week in which patients are treated. Testing results must be retained by the licensee for the current calendar year and the two preceding calendar years.

10. Emergency Medications Or Drugs. The following emergency medications or drugs are required in all sites where anesthetic agents of any kind are administered: anti-anaphylactic agent, antihistaminic, aspirin, bronchodilator, coronary artery vasodilator, and glucose.

11. Local Anesthesia. Dental offices in which local anesthesia is administered to patients shall, at a minimum, have and maintain suction equipment capable of aspirating gastric contents from the mouth and pharynx, a portable oxygen delivery system including full face masks and a bag-valve mask combination capable of delivering positive pressure, oxygen-enriched ventilation to the patient, a blood pressure cuff of appropriate size and a stethoscope.

12. Nitrous Oxide/Oxygen. Persons licensed to practice and dental assistants trained in accordance with these rules may administer nitrous oxide/oxygen to patients. Dental offices where nitrous oxide/oxygen is administered to patients must have the following: a fail-safe nitrous oxide delivery system that is maintained in working order; a scavenging system; and a positive-pressure oxygen delivery system suitable for the patient being treated.

13. Minimal Sedation. Persons licensed to practice dentistry may administer minimal sedation to patients of sixteen (16) years of age or older. When the intent is minimal sedation, the appropriate dosing of a single enteral drug is no more than the maximum FDA-recommended dose for unmonitored home use. In cases where the patient weighs less than one hundred (100) pounds, or is under the age of sixteen (16) years, minimal sedation may be administered without a permit by use of nitrous oxide, or with a single enteral dose of a sedative agent administered in the dental office.

14. Use of Other Anesthesia Personnel. A dentist who does not hold a sedation permit may perform dental procedures in a dental office on a patient who receives sedation induced by an anesthesiologist, a certified registered nurse anesthetist, or another dentist with a sedation permit. The qualified sedation provider who induces sedation will monitor the patient's condition until the patient is discharged. The sedation record must be maintained in the patient's dental record and is the responsibility of the dentist who is performing the dental procedures. A dentist who intends to use the services of a qualified sedation provider must notify the Board in writing of his intent. Such notification need only be submitted once every licensing period.

15. Incident Reporting. Dentists must report to the Board, in writing, within seven (7) days after the death or transport to a hospital or emergency center for medical treatment for a period exceeding twenty-four (24) hours of any patient.