Senior Dental Assistant

Job Title

Dental Assistant

Requirements

MOS Codes: 002669 (Navy), 31-9091.00 (Army), 4Y0X1 (Air Force)

Education and Experience: High School Diploma or GED or higher, and completion of an accredited dental assistant's program and six (6) years of experience in a dental office, clinic, or clinical dental chairside dental treatment including two (2) years of experience in a pediatric or public health dental setting.

Licenses and Certificates: Valid Texas Class "C" Driver's License or equivalent from another by date of appointment. Certification as a Dental Assistant through completion of a dental assistant course from an accredited college or technical school by date of appointment. Certified in Dental X-Ray proficiency and Coronal Polishing and Sealant application as prescribed by the Texas Department of Health by date of appointment.

General Purpose

Under general supervision, assists the dentist and dental hygienist with patient examinations and dental procedures and performs a variety of diverse clinical and clerical tasks.

Typical Duties

Provide assistance to dental professionals. Involves: Maintains office files and patient records. Assists patients in filling out necessary documents for federal and state assistance. Assists with patient insurance eligibility. Verifies patient intake information is correct, including obtaining signatures and making photocopies of the necessary forms. Obtains and documents the patient's vital signs. Seats patients and verbally prepares them for the intended procedure. Arrange dental instruments and materials for each patient. Assists in radiographic examinations and processes diagnostic digital X-rays. Clean, sterilize, and assemble dental instruments following treatment. Maintains dental equipment and the clinic area in a neat and clean condition. Assists with the dismissal of patients by scheduling appointments, reviewing post-op instructions, and relaying treatment provided. Updates dental patient records in the Dentrix database systems by entering data. Prepares receipts for services rendered, collects fees, and posts daily sheets. Completes daily oral hygiene education, hygiene packets, and front desk coverage, ensuring patient flow is seamless. Complete weekly equipment maintenance logs for eyewash stations, oxygen tanks, lead aprons, handpieces, emergency kits, inventory supplies, and autoclaves. Completes and files daily and weekly biological indicators. Completes monthly expiration, quality assurance, vacuum, and amalgam separator logs. Facilitate water tests per regulatory guidelines. Serves as the Designated Radiology Security Officer (RSO), which facilitates annual radiology regulatory processes and serves as a representative at compliance/quality and improvement meetings. Answers and professionally responds to telephone calls to schedule appointments and deliver information. Provides administrative support related to the section's budget, accounts, and purchasing office, and dental supplies and equipment to maintain supply inventory. Arrange for equipment repairs and order supplies as needed.

Supervise assigned staff. Involves: Assign, schedule, guide, and monitor work. Appraise employee performance. Provide for staff training and development. Counsel, motivate, and maintain harmony. Identify and resolve staff differences, conflicts, and deficiencies. Interview applicants. Recommend hiring, termination, transfers, discipline, merit pay, or other employee status changes. Enforce personnel rules and regulations and work behavior standards firmly and impartially. Perform related duties as required.

General Information

For complete job specification, click here. Note: This is an unclassified contract position. Employment is predicated on continuation of state/federal funding. Note: Applicants are encouraged to apply immediately. This position will close when a preset number of qualified applications have been received. Please note: Applicants with foreign diplomas, transcripts, and degrees must have all documents translated and evaluated by an agency of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) prior to submitting them to the Human Resources Department. Please visit for more information. A résumé and/or other documents will not be accepted in lieu of a completed application. Comments such as "See résumé" are not acceptable and will result in the application being considered incomplete. To qualify for this position, the required education, experience, knowledge, and skills must be clearly stated on your application's employment history. We do not use any information on your resume to review if you meet the minimum qualifications for this position. Failure to fully detail all experience and job duties in the application, or copying/pasting directly from the job specification, or responses referring to your résumé will eliminate you from consideration for the position.