Dental Hygienist

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Columbus (OH); On-site; USD 67,000 - 89,000; Full time

Job summary

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is seeking a Dental Hygienist to provide expert care in an outpatient clinic. Responsibilities include performing dental procedures, patient education, and maintaining hygiene standards. This role requires a commitment to veteran care and adherence to clinical protocols.

Qualifications

• Must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Proficient in written and spoken English.
• Currently licensed as a dental hygienist.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert hygienic dental care to veterans.
• Perform therapeutic and preventive procedures.
• Manage the dental recall system.

Skills

English

Patient Education

Infection Control

Education

Associate degree in Dental Hygiene

Tools

Dental Radiography

Dental Imaging Safety Techniques

Job description

Join to apply for the Dental Hygienist role at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

1 day ago Be among the first 25 applicants

Join to apply for the Dental Hygienist role at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Get AI-powered advice on this job and more exclusive features.

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provided pay range

This range is provided by U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Base pay range

$67,741.00/yr - $88,062.00/yr

Summary

The Chalmers P. Wylie Veterans Outpatient Clinic is recruiting for a Dental Hygienist within Dental Service. The incumbent will provide expert hygienic dental care and management of patients in an outpatient dental clinic to the veteran population.

Help

Duties

The Dental Hygienist duties include:

• Treating oral hygiene patients and advising and counseling such patients on proper oral health maintenance.
• Performing as a clinician and educational specialist providing therapeutic and preventive procedures on patients with a variety of conditions such as complicated medical histories, extreme apprehension, mental disorders and xerostomia.
• Referring patients to appropriate dentist for consultation or treatment as necessary.
• Setting up operatory for planned procedure and cleans dental unit for timely turnover strictly following clinical Standard Operating Procedures (SOP).
• Establishing work process(es) to support responses to all customer inquiries within 48-72 hours.
• Handling instruments safely, accurately, and efficiently.
• Provides routine oral prophylactic care to include application of fluoride solutions or varnish.
• Providing gross debridement, scaling and root planning procedures.
• Performing subgingival scaling, root planning after verifying a full charting and periodontal exam have been completed upon referral by staff dentist.
• Managing the dental recall system, ensuring continuity of care and proper referrals within the dental team.
• Serving as support both to staff periodontist in advanced cases and to implantologist in the maintenance of endosseous dental implants.
• Cleaning dental prostheses, fixed and removable
• Administering topical anesthetic agents.
• Preparing anesthetic syringe as needed for dentist.
• Administering local anesthetic, if licensed to provide local anesthetic.
• Removing sutures as needed.
• Accomplishing all procedures within standard infection control protocols.
• Providing patient education that is appropriate to the veteran's needs and oral condition.
• Providing individual and group oral health care instruction to patients and caregivers.
• Taking radiographic images that are characterized by diagnostic quality, accurately oriented and exposed correctly. Once the decision to obtain radiographs is made, they should attend to the ALARA (As low as reasonably achievable) principle and use best practices regarding exposure and patient shielding. Images are reviewed by the dentist and retakes are done as directed.
• Demonstrating proper infection control procedures in exposing images.
• Utilizing dental imaging safety techniques, and retakes are minimized.
• Preparing instruments properly for sterilization.
  
  

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Compressed/Flexible: Not Available

Telework: Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position

Functional Statement: Dental Assistant / 91928-A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized



Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required

Help

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• You may be required to serve a probationary period.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
  
  

Qualifications

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: Be a Citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C
• 7407(a), Administrative Provisions for Section 7405 and 7406 Appointments.
• Education. Applicants must possess an Associate degree or higher from an accredited dental hygiene program. The degree must have been obtained from an institution whose accreditation was in place for the year in which the course of study was completed. Approved programs are:
• Dental hygiene programs accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA).
• Education completed outside of the United States must be considered at least equivalent to that gained in CODA accredited United States programs and would enable the candidate to sit for the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination, which is administered by the Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations
• Licensure/Certification.
• Licensure. Applicants must be currently licensed to practice as a dental hygienist with a full, current and unrestricted license in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia
• Certification. P.L. 97-35, Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act Of 1981, requires persons who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 C.F.R. Part 75, Standards for the Accreditation of Educational Programs for and the Credentialing of Radiologic Personnel. To meet this requirement, 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. Accredited dental hygiene 2 programs contain curriculum addressing radiologic procedures meets the requirement for certification as dental radiographers.
• English Language Proficiency. Dental hygienist candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with 38 U.S.C.
• 7403(f).

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: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

GS-09:

• Experience: At least one year of experience at the next lower grade level that demonstrates the clinical competencies described at that level.
• Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities. In addition to meeting the KSAs for the GS-8 level, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:
• Knowledge of hygiene procedures to explain the process and indication, complications and expected treatment outcomes for each.
• Knowledge of proper usage of dental radiography equipment, radiation safety, assessment of proper image capture and interpretation of films.
• Knowledge to select appropriate available fluoride products and indications/limitations for safe and proper application.
• Skill in detecting plaque and calculus, dental abnormalities/pathologies, assessing inflammation and providing safe instrumentation for each procedure.
• Skill in educating patients and caregivers on periodontal disease, wellness, health maintenance, oral hygiene practices, parafunctional habits, and effects of illness, addictions, medications and tobacco on the oral cavity.
• Ability to assess the patient's medical, dental, anxiety/phobias, medications and comorbidities to administer safe patient care.
• Ability to assess the impact of patient's medical and dental condition on maintaining oral health, recognize age-related changes in individual patients, adapt patient environment, and maximize patient's physical comfort.

Preferred Experience:

• At least 2 years of practice experience as a Dental Hygienist
  
  

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-09.



Physical Requirements: Work requires some physical exertion such as sitting, standing and bending for long periods of time. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, or 25 pounds of force frequently to move objects is required. Some patients may be confined to a stretcher or wheelchair and it may be necessary to treat them in an awkward position. Incumbent must use good ergonomic technique and good safe practices.

Education



Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

VA Healthcare System Serving Ohio, Indiana and Michigan (VISN 10) advocates for a Whole Health System of care in each of the Medical Centers. This is an approach to healthcare that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their lives to the fullest. As an employee operating in a Whole Health System of care, you will operate in a model with three core elements, seeking to create a personalized health plan for each Veteran. This is done in the context of healing relationships and healing environments and a connection back to the Veteran's community. This aligns with the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mission Statement to Honor America's Veterans by providing exceptional health care that improves their health and well-being.

Read more

• 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.
  
  

Review our benefits

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.

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Health Care Provider

• Industries

  Hospitals and Health Care

Referrals increase your chances of interviewing at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs by 2x

Sign in to set job alerts for “Dental Hygienist” roles.

Hygienist - Full Time & Part Time $Sign On Bonus

Hygienist - Full Time & Part Time $Sign On Bonus

Expanded Functions Dental Assistant (EFDA) - Arch City Dental

We’re unlocking community knowledge in a new way. Experts add insights directly into each article, started with the help of AI.