Dental Assistant

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Iowa City (IA); On-site; USD 42,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

The Iowa City VA Medical Center is seeking a Dental Assistant to assist the dentist in a variety of direct patient care tasks and to perform clinical and clerical duties with a level of independence. This role may involve meeting CODA-related education and radiology certification requirements and ensuring patient safety and privacy.

Qualified applicants will have CODA-accredited dental assisting education or equivalent experience, U.S.

Qualifications

• US citizenship requirement as per VA policy.
• Minimum 6 months experience or CODA-accredited program completion.
• Radiologic credentialing requirements per Public Law 97-35.

Responsibilities

• Assist the dentist in direct patient care and perform related clinical tasks.
• Maintain infection control and safe instrument handling.
• Capture and process dental radiographs; manage dental equipment maintenance.
• Handle clerical duties as needed with independence from direct supervision.

Skills

Dental assisting

Radiography

Infection control

Patient care

Education

CODA-accredited dental assistant program

Job description

This Dental Assistant position is located at the Iowa City VA Medical Center. The incumbent assists the dentist in many aspects of direct patient care and performs other clinical and clerical functions independently of direct supervision. 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.
• Experience and Education
  • (1) Experience. Six months experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work, or provides familiarity with the work. OR,
  • (2) Education. Successful completion of a 1-year dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA).
  • (3) 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). 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 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.
• English Language Proficiency. Dental assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part.

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

GS-3

Experience or Education. None beyond the basic requirements.

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 Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (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 (1) or (2) 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 (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:

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

• Completion of an accredited Dental Assistant program (new graduates encouraged to apply).
• Experience assisting in general dentistry procedures such as restorative care, prosthodontics, oral surgery, or periodontal procedures (clinical rotations acceptable).
• Familiarity with infection control protocols and sterilization procedures.
• Experience working with digital radiography and electronic dental records (from coursework or clinical training).
• Strong communication and patient-care skills demonstrated in clinical or educational settings.
• CPR/BLS certification (or willingness to obtain before onboarding).
• Successful completion of an accredited Dental Assistant program (this ensures certification upon entry).

Reference

For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-06. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-03 to GS-06.

Physical Requirements

You will be asked to participate in a pre-employment examination or evaluation as part of the pre-employment process for this position. Questions about physical demands or environmental factors may be addressed at the time of evaluation or examination.