The Texas State Board of Dental Examiners is the first dental board in the U.S. to remove mental health questions from its credentialing applications.
The move is part of the Wellbeing First Champion Challenge program, which was launched by the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation to advocate for licensure boards, hospitals and health systems to update applications, forms and addendums to remove intrusive mental health questions and stigmatizing language.
The dental board joins 29 medical boards and 4 nursing boards that have verified that their applications do not include intrusive mental health questions as of Sept. 1.
Overly invasive mental health questions in applications can prevent healthcare workers from seeking support, increases the risk of suicide and violates the Americans with Disabilities Act, according to a news release.