Dental Assistant (Expanded Function)

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center; Bethesda (MD); On-site; USD 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

The Walter Reed National Military Medical Center is seeking a skilled Dental Assistant to provide comprehensive chair-side support and ensure effective patient care in a healthcare environment. Responsibilities include performing intra-oral procedures, assisting in various dental operations, and educating patients about dental hygiene. This role requires relevant certifications and specialized experience in maintaining dental equipment and supporting dental teams.

Benefits

Comprehensive federal benefits package

Specific training programs available

Qualifications

• Must have a Radiology Certification for dental procedures.
• Completed training in dental hygiene or assistant programs.
• Must have specialized experience in dental assisting.

Responsibilities

• Construct athletic mouth guards and custom trays.
• Maintain clear operating field during procedures.
• Instruct patients in preventive dental care.

Skills

Patient Care

Preventive Dental Care

Intra-oral Procedures

Education

Radiology Certification

Completed Dental Assistant Training

Job description

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Duties

• Construct athletic mouth guards, custom impression trays and soft bite-guards.
• Maintain clear operating field by using high volume evacuator and suction tip to remove fluids and debris, retract tongue, cheek, and tissues; apply rubber dam to isolate operative sites.
• Apply topical anesthetic, medicaments, and surgical gauze following extraction as directed; remove sutures.
• Obtain preliminary impressions, modify impression trays, fabricate custom trays, pour and trim casts.
• Schedule, receive and prepare patients for treatment.
• Instruct patients in preventive dental care, demonstrating brushing and flossing and explaining the common causes of tooth decay and periodontal disease.
  
  

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• This position requires the incumbent be able to obtain and maintain a determination of eligibility for a Tier 3 security investigation or access for the duration of employment. A background investigation and credit check are required.
• This position has mandatory seasonal Influenza vaccination requirements and is subject to annual seasonal Influenza vaccinations unless otherwise exempted for medical or religious reasons (documentation of exemption must be provided upon hire).
• This position requires that you obtain and maintain a Basic Life Support (BLS) certification from, or in accordance with, the American Heart Association and American Red Cross. Advanced certification (e.g., ALS) does not supersede BLS.
  
  

Qualifications

Who May Apply: US Citizens

In order to qualify, you must meet the experience requirements described below. Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application. Additional information about transcripts is in this document.

Basic Requirement For Dental Assistant (Expanded Function):

Radiology Certification: Public Law 97-35 requires that persons who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 CFR Part 75. Essentially, they must (1) 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 (2) be certified as radiographers in their field. The following meet these requirements:

• Persons employed by the Federal Government as radiologic personnel prior to the effective date of the regulation (January 13, 1986) who show evidence of current or fully satisfactory performance or certification of such from a licensed practitioner such as a Doctor of Medicine, osteopathy, dentistry, podiatry, or chiropractic who prescribes radiologic procedures to others.
• Persons first employed by the Federal Government as radiologic personnel after the effective date of the regulation who (a) received training from institutions in a State or foreign jurisdiction that did not accredit training in that particular field at the time of graduation, or (b) practiced in a State or foreign jurisdiction that did not license that particular field or did not allow special eligibility to take a licensure examination for those who did not graduate from an accredited educational program, provided such persons show evidence of training, experience, and competence, as determined by OPM or the employing agency.
  
  

Applicants For Dental Assistant (Expanded Function) Positions Must Have Completed One-year Of Acceptable Course Work, Preceptorship, Or Other Formal Training And/or Work Assignments Specifically Designed To Equip Them With Knowledge And Skills Required To Perform Intra-oral Procedures Involved In The Position To Be Filled. Examples Of Acceptable Training Are:

• Courses in a dental hygiene or dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Accreditation that are directly related to the intra-oral procedures (also referred to as expanded functions) that are to be performed in the position to be filled.
• U.S. Army's Dental Therapy Assistant Training Program.
• Continuing education courses in expanded functions for dental assistants offered by the Indian Health Service of the Department of Health and Human Services.
• Other training comparable to the above in private or governmental hospitals, clinics, or schools that included formal classroom instruction and clinical training in the knowledge and skills required to perform intra-oral procedures in the position to be filled.
  
  

Note: You must attach proof of completing the Radiologic and educational requirement with your application package. Proof may include school transcripts, course completion certificates, certification, etc.

In Addition To Meeting The Basic Requirement Above, To Qualify For This Position You Must Also Meet The Qualification Requirements Listed Below:

Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience which includes providing chair-side dental assistant expanded function duties to include performing oral prophylaxis and operating dental x-ray equipment to take intra and extra-oral radiographs. This definition of specialized experience is typical of work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service (GS-05).

Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. For this job, you must meet the qualification requirement using experience alone--no substitution of education for experience is permitted.

Additional information

• Male applicants born after December 31, 1959 must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Registration.
• You will be required to provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
• One year trial/probationary period may be required.
• Direct Deposit of Pay is required.
• Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees.
• Multiple positions may be filled from this announcement.
• Salary includes applicable locality pay or Local Market Supplement.
• If you have retired from federal service and you are interested in employment as a reemployed annuitant, see the information in the Reemployed Annuitant information sheet.
• Payment of Permanent Change of Station (PCS) costs is not authorized, based on a determination that a PCS move is not in the Government interest.
  
  

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• Help 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.
  
  

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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.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Once the announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement.

If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.

You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation.

Veterans and Military Spouses will be considered along with all other candidates.

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Required Documents

The documents you are required to submit vary based on whether or not you are eligible for preference in federal employment. A complete description of preference categories and the associated required documents is in the Applicant Checklist for Public Announcements.

As described above, your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.2. Other supporting documents:

• Your resume:
• Your resume may be submitted in any format and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement.
• If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content, it will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations and you may not be considered for this vacancy.
• For qualifications determinations your resume must contain hours worked per week and the dates of employment (i.e., HRS per week and month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as incomplete and you may not receive consideration for this position.
• For additional information see: What to include in your resume.
• Cover Letter, optional
• Most recent Performance Appraisal, if applicable
• License/Certification: This position requires a job-related license or certification. You MUST submit a copy of your license or certification with your application package or you will be rated ineligible. See: Transcripts and Licenses.
  
  

NOTE: Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.