Dental Assistant

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; West Haven (CT); On-site; USD 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Medical Center in West Haven, CT, is hiring a Dental Assistant for a full-time, 40-hour work week. Applicants may be referred pending education/certification requirements and must meet radiologic credentialing standards.

GS-06 level requires demonstrated dental duties, vital signs, patient education, and radiographic assistance, with CDA credential preferred but not required. English proficiency is mandatory.

Qualifications

• Six months experience demonstrating work ability or familiarity with dental tasks.
• Education: CODA-accredited dental assistant program (1 year).
• Experience/education combinations also qualify.
• Radiologic competence certification or equivalent credentialing standards.

Responsibilities

• Measure and record vital signs for patients.
• Provide pre- and post-operative instructions to patients.
• Assist with dental procedures using four-handed dentistry and equipment handling.
• Capture standard dental images and assist with radiographic procedures.

Skills

Vital signs measurement

Patient education

Four-handed dentistry

Clinical instruction ability

English proficiency

Education

CODA-accredited dental assistant program

Job description

The Dental Assistant position is located in the Dental Service Line at the Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Medical Center, West Haven Connecticut. This position is a Full-Time position at 40 hours per week.

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

OR, Education: 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-

• Successful completion of the Dental Radiation Health and Safety Examination administered by the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc.; OR,
• 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,
• Successful completion of a radiation health and safety program or examination approved by a state board of dentistry or the Department of Defense (DoD).

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).

GS-06 (Full Performance Level)-

Experience. At least one (1) year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level. Examples of experience includes: 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.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs) In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following 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.

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).

Preferred Experience:

CDA (Certified Dental Assistant) is preferred but not required

Reference:

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

Physical Requirements:

Stand for long periods of time, use hands to handle, control, or feel objects, tools, or controls.