Advertisement
Advertisement
|
Home :: More Career Profiles
Dental Assistant |
Career OverviewA career as a dental assistant is extremely rewarding in the current climate. Dental assistants serve a variety of functions, helping qualified dentists with patient care, office work, and laboratory duties.
In many cases, dental assistants are present to assist as dentists examine and treat patients for a range of conditions. The role of the dental assistant to facilitate patient care often includes helping the patient to feel comfortable, preparing for treatments by laying out and sterilizing the necessary instruments and materials, obtaining dental records for review, and occasionally helping the dentist perform a treatment or diagnostic function by using suction to keep the patient’s mouth dry and clean during the proceedings.
Depending on their level of expertise, dental assistants may also prepare the materials that dentists use to create impressions of patient’s mouths and to make restorations. They may also take dental X-rays and process X-ray films according to specific instructions from the dentist.
Dental assistants may also remove sutures, apply anesthetics to gums, apply cavity-preventive agents to teeth, remove excess cement after a filling process, and placing rubber dams on teeth that need to receive specific treatment.
Some dental assistants also have laboratory experience and may be responsible for making casts of teeth, making casts from mouth impressions, cleaning and polishing removable appliances, and manufacturing temporary crowns according to specifications.
Office duties typically assigned to dental assistants include scheduling and confirming appointments with patients, keeping track of patient records, overseeing the accounting processes, including billing and purchasing.
Dental hygienists do not have advanced training to perform clinical functions outside of the supervision of dentists. Their role is somewhat different to dental hygienists; however, dental assistants can secure full-time employment, amounting to thirty-five or forty hour weeks. Payment is generally competitive and additional benefits are often available.
|
Career RequirementsMinimum requirements to work as a dental assistant vary depending on the preferences of the individual employer. Most require applicants to have at least a high school diploma or an equivalent GED but this varies on a case by case basis. Specific training is no required but is now being offered by a number of institutions.
The Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association approved 265 training programs for dental assistants in 2005. These programs included classroom and laboratory instruction. May also reviewed preclinical instruction in the skills typically required of dental assistants. Practical experience was also made available in conjunction with some courses, including internships in dental schools, clinics, and dental offices.
The vast majority of the dental assistant programs require just one year’s participation and lead to certification or the award of a diploma. Some community and junior colleges are now offering Associate degrees in dental assisting but require two years commitment before qualifications are awarded. All accredited dental assistant programs require candidates to have a high school diploma for entrance into the field.
The Commission on Dental Accreditation does not credit courses offered by vocational schools, but these courses offer courses n dental assisting lasting between four and six months on average.
Whilst many dental assistants learn the necessary skills through on-the-job training, the law does impose specific licensing and registration regulations on the tasks that dental assistants may perform without passing required written or practical examinations.
Many states require dental assistants to complete state-approved educational courses of between four and twelve hours to become qualified to perform a range of clinical functions. A few states allow assistants to perform any task designated to them by their dentist supervisor. Regulations and requirements are determined by individual states.
|
Advertisement
|
Job OutlookAt present, job prospects for dental assistants are excellent as dentists are expected to hire more assistants to perform routine tasks. Dentists are increasingly keen to focus on performing more complex procedures to benefit patients.
Most assistants will still learn their skills on-the-job, working closely with and for the most part under the supervision of dentists. An increasing number of dental assistants will, however, undertake a training course in dental assisting leading to a certification and often fulfilling state-imposed licensing and registration requirements.
Employment opportunities for dental assistants are expected to grow considerably during the next decade. Many projections suggest that dental assisting will be one of the fastest growing occupations across the next ten years. Most positions will be entry-level opportunities allowing for on-the-job training.
The growth of the middle-aged and elderly populations in the United States suggests that there will be a greater demand for dental services in the future, as more people are retaining their natural teeth.
Older dentists, who have employed fewer assistants as a group, are retiring, whilst newly or recently qualified dentists are hiring more assistants, in some cases, two or more to assist with increasing workloads.
All indicators suggest a rewarding career awaits dental assistants, whether or not they have any relevant training or experience.
|
Career TrackThe current outlook for dental assistants is suggested by the trends of the pervious year. Dental assistants held about 270,000 jobs in 2004.
Almost all dental assistants work in the offices of dentists; Federal, State, local governments, and physicians’ offices employ a very small number of dental assistants. Just less than half of all dental assistants work part-time, accounting for approximately two in five of all dental assistants.
The profession offers some long-term stability but for the most part serves as a stepping-stone to other career tracks, including careers in dentistry, in dental hygiene and dental technology.
|
CompensationDental assistants are generally paid an hourly rate, which averages approximately $15.00. Depending on where they work, dental assistants also receive some benefits. Those who work full time typically receive paid vacation time and dental and health care coverage as well.
|
|