Dental assistants and therapists provide basic dental care services for the prevention and treatment of diseases and disorders of the teeth and mouth, according to care plans and procedures established by a dentist or other oral health professional.
Job Description:
Clean teeth and examine oral areas, head, and neck for signs of oral disease. May educate patients on oral hygiene, take and develop X-rays, or apply fluoride or sealants
Duties and Tasks:
1) Clean calcareous deposits, accretions, and stains from teeth and beneath margins of gums, using dental instruments.
2) Feel and visually examine gums for sores and signs of disease.
3) Chart conditions of decay and disease for diagnosis and treatment by dentist.
4) Feel lymph nodes under patient’s chin to detect swelling or tenderness that could indicate presence of oral cancer.
5) Apply fluorides and other cavity preventing agents to arrest dental decay.
6) Examine gums, using probes, to locate periodontal recessed gums and signs of gum disease.
7) Expose and develop x-ray film.
8) Provide clinical services and health education to improve and maintain oral health of school children.
9) Remove excess cement from coronal surfaces of teeth.
10) Make impressions for study casts.
11) Place, carve, and finish amalgam restorations.
12) Administer local anesthetic agents.
13) Conduct dental health clinics for community groups to augment services of dentist.
14) Remove sutures and dressings.
15) Place and remove rubber dams, matrices, and temporary restorations.
Activities:
1) Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
2) Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
3) Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
4) Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
5) Performing for or Working Directly with the Public — Performing for people or dealing directly with the public. This includes serving customers in restaurants and stores, and receiving clients or guests.
6) Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
7) Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others — Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
8) Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
9) Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
10) Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
11) Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
12) Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
13) Coaching and Developing Others — Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
14) Performing Administrative Activities — Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
15) Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Abilities:
1) Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand
2) Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
3) Arm-Hand Steadiness — The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
4) Control Precision — The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
5) Finger Dexterity — The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
6) Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
7) Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
8)Manual Dexterity — The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
9) Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
10) Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
11) Selective Attention — The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
12) Multilimb Coordination — The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
13) Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
14) Extent Flexibility — The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Knowledge
1) Medicine and Dentistry — Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures
2) Biology — Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
3) Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
4)Education and Training — Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
5) English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
6) Psychology — Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
7) Sales and Marketing — Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
8) Public Safety and Security — Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
9) Production and Processing — Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.