Dental assistant
Dental assistants help the dental operator (dentist or other treating dental auxiliary) provide more efficient dental treatment. Dental operators can focus more time on providing treatment when assistants oversee the necessary but menial tasks, and by effectively becoming the operator's extra hands.
Duties
The limitations to the duties dental assistants can perform is often regulated by the local dental governing body. Increasingly more assistant duties are being made legitimate to allow dental operators to focus more on dental treatment.
[edit] Traditional duties
Traditionally, tasks which dental operators require of an assistant include:
* assisting the dental operator by pre-assessing the need for the procedure, holding and passing instruments
* retracting tissues and suctioning to assist better vision of the operating field
* retrieving, setting up and laying out dental equipment and dental instruments
* mixing materials
* sterilizing dental instruments and equipment
* developing dental radiographs
* charting for the dental operator
* exposing radiographs
* fabrication bleaching trays
* in-office bleaching
* applying sealants
[edit] Extended duties
Other extended duties, many depending on local dental regulations, can include:
* dental lab work, such as pouring & trimming models
* filing charts
* appointment scheduling
* maintaining dental record keeping
* taking impressions
* giving post-op instructions
* making temporary crowns
* manage patient welfare
* educate patients on oral health
* complete procedures started by dentists
* pack gingival retraction cord for accurate impressions
* ordering dental supplies for office
* placing dental sealants
* rubber-cup prophy for patients
[edit] Educational and licensing requirements in U.S.
While, in some states, dental assistants can work in the field without a college degree, in other states, dental assistants must be licensed or registered.
After completing a program that takes about nine to 11 months, plus an exam, dental assistants receive a certificate or diploma in dental assisting. Two-year programs offered in community and junior colleges lead to an associate degree. All programs require a high school diploma or its equivalent, and some require science or computer-related courses for admission.
The Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association is the agency that accredits dental assisting school programs, of which there are over 200 in the United States. To become a Certified Dental Assistant, or CDA, dental assistants must take the CDA examination after they have completed an accredited dental assisting program, or have at least two years of full-time on-the-job training as a dental assistant.[1]
[edit] Dental Assistant Jobs
Dental assistant jobs are available throughout the United States. The most effective way to find dental assistant jobs is by online job boards such as
http://www.dentalpost.net,http://www.indeed.com, and
http://www.careersindental.com. Some of the cities with the most dental assistant job opportunities include Atlanta, Houston, Dallas, Miami, Chicago, San Diego, and Los Angeles. If you use an internet-based job board, you can narrow your search by geography.
[edit] References
1. ^ Educational Requirements for Dental Assistants in USA
Dental hygienist
A dental hygienist is a licensed dental auxiliary who specializes in preventive dental care, typically, but not limited to, focusing on techniques in oral hygiene. Local dental regulations determine the duties hygienists are able to perform. In most jurisdictions, hygienists work for a dentist, and some are licensed to administer restricted techniques of local anesthesia. Common procedures performed by hygienists include cleaning, scaling and root planing, radiography, and dental sealing.
In some areas, the dental regulations include extended duties and exemptions for dental hygienists. Some hygienists are allowed to practice scaling and root planing without dentist supervision. In many areas, if under the supervision of a dentist, hygienists are allowed to perform bleaching techniques to restore teeth with certain classes of fillings.
Dental hygiene process of care
The dental hygiene process of care has five steps:
* Assessment: Gathering data.
* Dental hygiene diagnosis: Interpreting data into a coherent description of a client's condition in terms that can be addressed by a dental hygienist.
* Planning: Determining the techniques that will solve the problems indicated in the dental hygiene diagnosis and the order in which those techniques will be applied.
* Implementation: Carrying out the plan.
* Evaluation: Determining the effectiveness of the work that was performed.
Over a period of months or years a dental hy