MHA | Pacific University, Hillsboro, Oregon
EPDH, BSDH | Pacific University
BS | The University of Oregon
Tulsi Patel is the Director of Health Promotion at the UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry, where she also serves as an Associate Professor in the Department of Periodontics and Dental Hygiene. She has been a dedicated educator and clinician since 2014, specializing in preventive health education and periodontal therapy.
Prof. Patel completed her Master of Healthcare Administration (MHA) at Pacific University, where she also earned an Expanded Practice Dental Hygiene (EPDH) license in Oregon. She also holds a Bachelor of Science in Human Physiology with a focus in Exercise Physiology from the University of Oregon.
Before joining UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry, Prof. Patel served as a Clinical Instructor at the School of Dental Health Science at Pacific University, where she instructed in clinical dental hygiene, local anesthesia, and restorative clinics. She also supervised students at off-site rotations, working with expanded functions to deliver oral healthcare to underserved populations. While completing her graduate coursework, Prof. Patel developed a patient quality assurance program to be integrated with axiUm in the dental hygiene clinic. The focus of her graduate capstone project was on the development of a Wellness Center using integrated (interprofessional), value-based care for the purpose of improving health outcomes.
Prof. Patel’s research focuses on periodontal therapy, innovation in education, and prevention. She currently oversees the clinical and educational activities in the Center for Health Promotion, which focuses on teaching prevention and health promotion to dental students as it relates to an Integrated Dental Medicine clinical model of care delivery.
Prof. Patel is an active member of the American Dental Education Association (ADEA), American Dental Hygienists’ Association (ADHA), Texas Dental Hygienists’ Association (TDHA), Dental Hygiene Educators of Texas (DHET), and the Greater Houston Dental Hygiene Association (GHDHA). She is also a member of Sigma Phi Alpha, the national honor society for dental hygiene, holding alumni membership in the Delta Delta Xi chapter and serving as the Secretary of the Alpha Epsilon chapter at UTSD.
Prof. Patel has been the recipient of the Lorna J. Bruning Award for excellence in teaching from UTHealth Houston School of Dentistry in 2018 and 2023, and the Procter & Gamble Excellence in Teaching Award in 2023. In 2024, she was recognized as a Fellow of the American Dental Hygienists’ Association (FADHA) for demonstration of significant contributions to the advancement of the science and art of dental hygiene.
Prof. Patel has published numerous articles in peer-reviewed journals, including the International Journal of Dental Hygiene, Journal of Dental Education, Canadian Journal of Dental Hygiene, Dimensions of Dental Hygiene, and Decisions in Dentistry. She has also presented her research at national and international meetings like the annual conference for the International Association for Dental Research (IADR).