Dental Assistant (req 101127)

Whitney M. Young, Jr. Health Center; City of Albany (NY); On-site; USD 29,000 - 35,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401k with match

Tuition reimbursement

Commuter benefits

Job summary

Whitney Young Health in Albany, NY is seeking a full-time Dental Assistant to support staff dentists and ensure smooth patient flow. The role emphasizes infection control, patient preparation, radiographs, charting, and daily operatory readiness.

The ideal candidate will assist during all treatment phases, maintain supplies, and uphold HIPAA and safety standards while delivering excellent customer service.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• Promotional opportunities based on years of experience (0, 1, or more years of dental assisting).
• Certified by accredited Dental Assistant Program plus one year experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Assists Staff Dentists with treatment of WYH dental patients.
• Prepare the operatory and instruments for dentist use.
• Take accurate blood pressure readings and record dental charting.
• Expose and process dental radiographs; mount films.
• Maintain infection control logs and sterilize instruments.
• Prepare patient for dismissal and reinforce post‑treatment instructions.
• Seeks direction from dentist and ensures compliance with HIPAA and safety standards.

Education

High school diploma or equivalent

Job description

Description

Be a part of the mission at Whitney Young Health (WYH) to provide high quality healthcare that is affordable and accessible to our diverse community.

WYH has a robust benefits package including generous time off, affordable health, dental and vision insurance, 401k with safe harbor employer match, tuition reimbursement, term life insurance, commuter benefits and more!

General Responsibilities

Assists Staff Dentists with the treatment of Whitney Young Health (WYH) Dental patients. Please note, this a full-time position, 40 hours a week.

• Receives, seats and prepares patients for dental treatment.
• Reviews the dental record to ensure that the record is in order and the appropriate radiographs are available.
• Ensures that appropriate instruments and materials are ready for use by the dentist.
• Prepare dental restorative and impression materials and anesthetic syringes
• Take an accurate blood pressure reading
• Accurately record (dental charting) on the dental record existing conditions and treatment to be done as per dentist direction.
• Properly screen urgent care and emergency walk-in patients and take necessary dental radiographs
• Utilize acceptable technical skills in assisting the dentist during all phases of treatment.
• Consistently prepares patient for dismissal, confirms future appointments, and reinforces instructions given by the dentist concerning post-treatment care and the use of medications.
• Prepare the operatory between patients using proper disinfection and infection control procedures and in a timely manner.
• Create a dental claim on eCW as instructed by the provider
• Consistently keeps the lab, dark room and sterilization area clean and orderly, using infection control procedures
• Consistently maintains Infection Control logs
• Appropriately maintains necessary supplies in the treatment area
• Use various dental and office equipment and follow preventive maintenance procedures for such equipment.
• Properly expose dental radiographs, process and mount the film.
• Properly disinfect and prepare soiled instruments for sterilization.
• Perform weekly maintenance and spore testing on the autoclaves as assigned.
• Operate the autoclave and sterilize the instruments.
• File and retrieve dental records.
• Seeks direction and guidance from dentist in performing their duties regarding patient care.
• Demonstrates excellence in both internal and external customer service.
• Understands and is able to effectively communicate HIPAA compliance, corporate compliance and client confidentiality.
• Ensures and/or remains in compliance with local, state, and federal regulation, i.e. DHHS HRSA and NYSDOH, and all accreditation standards (e.g. Joint Commission and NCQA-PCMH).
• Adheres to the National Patient Safety Goals as defined by the Joint Commission and Whitney M. Young Jr. Health Center.
• Completes other duties as assigned.

Specific Responsibilities

• Receives, seats and prepares patients for dental treatment.
• Reviews the dental record to ensure that the record is in order and the appropriate radiographs are available.
• Ensures that appropriate instruments and materials are ready for use by the dentist.
• Prepare dental restorative and impression materials and anesthetic syringes
• Take an accurate blood pressure reading
• Accurately record (dental charting) on the dental record existing conditions and treatment to be done as per dentist direction.
• Properly screen urgent care and emergency walk-in patients and take necessary dental radiographs
• Utilize acceptable technical skills in assisting the dentist during all phases of treatment.
• Consistently prepares patient for dismissal, confirms future appointments, and reinforces instructions given by the dentist concerning post-treatment care and the use of medications.
• Prepare the operatory between patients using proper disinfection and infection control procedures and in a timely manner.
• Create a dental claim on eCW as instructed by the provider
• Consistently keeps the lab, dark room and sterilization area clean and orderly, using infection control procedures
• Consistently maintains Infection Control logs
• Appropriately maintains necessary supplies in the treatment area
• Use various dental and office equipment and follow preventive maintenance procedures for such equipment.
• Properly expose dental radiographs, process and mount the film.
• Properly disinfect and prepare soiled instruments for sterilization.
• Perform weekly maintenance and spore testing on the autoclaves as assigned.
• Operate the autoclave and sterilize the instruments.
• File and retrieve dental records.
• Pour study models.
• Perform backup reception duties as needed
• Seeks direction and guidance from dentist in performing their duties regarding patient care.
• Demonstrates excellence in both internal and external customer service.
• Understands and is able to effectively communicate HIPAA compliance, corporate compliance and client confidentiality.
• Ensures and/or remains in compliance with local, state, and federal regulation, i.e. DHHS HRSA and NYSDOH, and all accreditation standards (e.g. Joint Commission and NCQA-PCMH).
• Adheres to the National Patient Safety Goals as defined by the Joint Commission and Whitney M. Young Jr. Health Center.
• Completes other duties as assigned.

Requirements

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

High school graduate or equivalent. Promotional opportunities based on years of experience (i.e. Dental Assistant 0 = no experience; Dental Assistant 1 = 1 year of assisting experience; Dental Assistant 2 = 2+ years of assisting experience).

Preferred Qualifications

Certified by accredited Dental Assistant Program plus one year experience as Dental Assistant.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other legally protected status.

Salary range: $21.12 - $25.75 hourly