Dental Assistant

Summary

The Dental Assistant position is located at the Pittsburgh VA Medical Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The incumbent at this level serve as a Dental Assistant at full performance for more routine patient care and perform some complex patient procedures under general supervision of more experienced dental assistants or a dental supervisor.

Learn more about this agency

Duties

Help

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

The Dental Assistant assists the dentist in many aspects of direct care and performs other clinical and clerical functions independently of direct supervision.

GS-3 Entry Level Employees at this level serve in dental assistant career development positions. It is expected that they receive guidance from more experienced staff members for more complex patient issues, and require daily close supervision.

GS-4 Developmental Level Employees at this level serve as staff dental assistants. It is expected that they receive guidance from more experienced staff members for more complex patient issues and require daily and direct contact at the site of work from the assigned supervisor. Assignments at this level include but are not limited to:

• receiving and preparing patient for treatment including seating, positioning chair, placing napkin, performing disinfection and sterilization procedures;
• performing basic chair side assisting with direct instruction from treating dentist;
• reporting medical emergencies to dentist;
• preparing procedural trays/armamentaria set-ups;
• exposing and processing basic dental radiographs with direct supervision;
• mounting and labeling dental radiographs and/or saving digital images to the electronic medical record with direct supervision;
• complying with standard recommendation for equipment maintenance;
• retrieving all pertinent patient records prior to seating the dental patient;
• directing patient to appropriate staff for the intent of scheduling visits.

GS-5 Employees at this level serve as dental assistants for routine dental procedures. Direct supervision is given for any complex patient procedures from more experienced dental assistants or the treating dentist. Assignments at this level include but are not limited to:

• responds to basic medical emergencies;
• measures and records vital signs; provides pre- and post- operative instructions;
• maintains a field of operation during dental procedures through the use of retraction, suction, irrigation, drying, placing and removing cotton rolls;
• using the concepts of four- handed dentistry, assists with basic restorative procedures;
• mixes basic dental materials;
• assists in preparation of laboratory prescription forms;
• applies pressure indicator paste to removable prostheses;
• exposes and processes basic dental radiographs;
• mounts and labels dental radiographs and/or saves digital imaging to electronic medical records;
• evaluates radiographs for diagnostic quality;
• maintains routine dental equipment per manufacturer and dental service standards.

GS-6 Dental Assistant (Full Performance Level) Employees serves at the full performance level with the ability to perform full range of duties with some independence in assigned specialties, with indirect supervision from the lead dental assistant, dental assistant supervisor or treating dentist. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to:

• using the concepts of four-handed dentistry;
• assists with specialty procedures including oral surgery, periodontal therapy, endodontic, prosthodontic and implant placement and restoration;
• anticipates provider needs at each stage of treatment;
• takes preliminary impressions;
• selects and manipulates a variety of impression materials and cements
• pours, trims and evaluates the quality of diagnostic casts;
• fabricates custom trays.

Work Schedule : 8 AM to 4:30 PM Monday to Friday

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).

Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)

Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66 .

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA

Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)

Telework : Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements :

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• English Language Proficiency : Dental assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English.

Experience and Education :

• Six months experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work, or provides familiarity with the work.

OR,

• Successful completion of a 1-year dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on [Dental] Accreditation (CODA)

OR,

• Experience/Education Combination.
• Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying.

Certification. Public Law 97-35 requires that persons who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 CFR Part 75. Essentially, they must have successfully completed an educational program that meets or exceeds the standards described in that regulation, and is accredited by an organization recognized by the Department of Education, and be certified as radiographers in their field.

Provisions for Certification of Radiologic Competence:

• (a) Successful completion of the Dental Radiation Health and Safety Examination administered by the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc.;

OR,

• (b) Successful completion of the Principles and Practice of Dental Radiology and Radiographic Safety courses and examinations developed by the Assistant Under Secretary for Health for Dentistry.

OR,

• (c) Successful completion of a radiation health and safety program or examination approved by a state board of dentistry or the Department of Defense (DoD).

Non-certified applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements for certification of radiologic competence may be given a temporary appointment as a graduate dental assistant under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405 (a) (1) (D) on Dental Accreditation. Failure to obtain certification during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment. This will result in removal from the GS-681 series and may result in termination of employment.

• Certification in basic life support methods is highly desirable.
• Certification by the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). The American Dental Association (ADA) recognizes DANB as the national certification for Dental Assistants. DANB certification is not required, but highly desirable for the appointment of Dental Assistants up to and including the full performance level, and is required for all positions above the full performance level.

Loss of Credential. An employee in this occupation who fails to obtain licensure/certification/registration within the required time frame, or who fails to maintain the required licensure/certification/registration must be removed from the occupation, which may also result in termination of employment.

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations :

In addition to the basic requirements for employment mentioned above, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

GS-3 Experience or Education. None beyond the basic requirements.

Assignment. Employees at this level serve in dental assistant career development positions. It is expected that they receive guidance from more experienced staff members for more complex patient issues, and require daily close supervision.

GS-4 Experience or Education. In addition to the basic requirements, 1 year of experience at the next lower level,

OR,

2 years of education above high school that included completion of a dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA).

In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

1. Basic knowledge of infection control and safe instrument handling.

2. Basic knowledge of dental procedures and medical emergencies.

3. Ability to perform basic radiographic image capture and processing/retrieval.

4. Basic knowledge of maintenance, care and storage of dental equipment.

5. Basic knowledge of patient privacy requirements.

GS-5 Experience or Education

In addition to the requirements listed at GS-4 above, applicants must demonstrate at least 1 year of experience [equivalent to] at the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level,

OR,

Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study that included or was supplemented by completion of a dental assistant program by CODA.

In addition to meeting paragraph above, the applicant must demonstrate the following KSA's:

1. Knowledge of anatomy and ability to evaluate diagnostic quality.

2. Broad knowledge of common medical emergencies and vital signs measurement.

3. Basic knowledge of instruments, materials and standardized dental procedures.

4. Ability to learn and utilize software programs used within VHA.

5. Basic communication skills to provide patient instructions according to established protocol.

GS-6 Dental Assistant (Full Performance Level)Experience. At least 1 year of experience equivalent to] the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level.

In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the [following] technical KSAs:

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

1. Ability to identify normal oral anatomy.

2. Advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized dental procedures used in all phases of restorative, surgical, endodontic and periodontal care and procedures.

3. Ability to monitor and perform basic interpretation of vital signs.

4. Ability to independently provide procedure-specific patient education and appropriate referral of patient concerns to treating dentist.

5. Ability to capture standard and special dental images of good diagnostic quality in traditional or digital formats.

6. Ability to perform maintenance on dental equipment used for routine and specialty dentistry.

7. Ability to enter and retrieve data utilizing electronic dental records.

8. Ability to perform dental assistant-appropriate laboratory procedures]

Preferred Experience: 1 yr or more of work as a Dental Assistant would be most desirable.

NOTE: Make sure the work history includes the begin and end date to be creditable. (example: January 5, 2002 to June 5, 2025)

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS 6.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit:

Transcript Reminder - If you are using Experience and Education to qualify at the GS-5 level or above then there is a minimum requirement of unofficial transcripts or an appropriate course listing must be submitted with your application. Applications will not be considered without appropriate transcripts.

Additional information

Resume Reminder - Your resume must include the following information for each job listed: Employer name and complete address; Job title; Duties (be as detailed as possible); Month & year start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008); Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week); and Series and Grade, if applicable, for all Federal positions you have held. Please be aware that your answers will be verified against information provided on your resume. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your responses to all of the questions by addressing your work experience in detail.

Recommended: Even though we do not require a specific resume format, your resume must be clear so that we are able to fully evaluate your qualifications. To ensure you receive appropriate consideration, please list the duties you performed under each individual job title. If we are unable to match your experiences with the positions held, you may lose consideration for this vacancy. We cannot make assumptions regarding your qualifications.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Help

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.