Dental Assistant

CCAP Mission Statement To empower all people and communities challenged by poverty as well as social and cultural barriers through advocacy education and access to high quality health and human services.

JOB SUMMARY:

A fulltime position responsible for assisting the dentist(s) and dental hygienist(s) in the direct provision of primary care dental services to patients of the center. The Dental Assistant is also responsible for sterilization preparation and inventory control of dental instruments and supplies.

WORK SCHEDULE DEMANDS:

The position is fulltime 38 hours per week.

Occasional unscheduled overtime may be required in the event of vacation time or short staffing.

Due to the nature of the job this individual must be flexible with their schedule to accommodate the client population.

May be required to work at any CCAP location.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• High school diploma or GED certificate
• Bilingual Spanish and English
• Completion of accredited course in dental assisting preferred
• Certified Dental Assistant preferred
• Current CPR (BLS) required
• XRay certification preferred

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Assists patients in resolving minor difficulties answering their questions and giving directions to patients as authorized by the dentist or dental hygienist.
• Serves as dentists or dental hygienists chairside assistant.
• Prepares operatory for patient treatment as per Dental Department protocols and the dentists or dental hygienists directions.
• Exposes and develops dental radiographs in accordance with state regulations and law as well as Dental Department directive and protocol.
• Performs independent procedures as delegated and directed by the dentist in accordance with state regulation and law and Dental Department directive and protocol.
• Maintains Dental Department equipment in accordance with manufacturers directions and Dental Department policy and protocol.
• Maintains all Dental Department areas in compliance with Dental Department directives and protocols as well as center policies and procedures relative to infection control exposure control and safety issues.
• Maintains adequate operatory supplies and compiles a list of individual item shortages for inventory control and ordering purposes.
• Maintains a list of all Dental Department patients monitors patient flow and assists the Dental Director dentist(s) and dental hygienist(s) in assuring that all patient records and documents are properly and accurately completed and filed.
• Pulls and files patient charts as required.
• Receives and places necessary telephone calls consistent with professional matters clinic business and patient care of the Dental Department.
• Assists with various clinical and administrative functions of the center as appropriate and time permits.
• Insures the sterility of all reusable dental instruments and equipment in accordance with Dental Department directive and protocol.
• Insures the proper disposal of all contaminated or potentially contaminated materials in accordance with Dental Department directive center policy as well as state and federal regulation(s).
• Performs all functions in full compliance with the centers and the Dental Department Exposure Control Plan including but not limited to the use of Personal Protective Equipment and Universal Precautions.
• Participates in appropriate health promotion / disease prevention activities both onsite and offsite as required.
• Travels when necessary to meet operational needs.
• As directed by a supervisor performs other related and/or necessary tasks to achieve organizational and programmatic goals and objectives.
• Responsible for personal compliance in full with all applicable federal state local and center rules regulations protocols and procedures including but not limited to the participation of a Dental Assistant in the provision of clinical dental care as well as those relating to but not limited to personnel issues workplace safety public health and confidentiality.

SKILLS AND ABILITIES:

• Requires a comprehensive knowledge of dental assisting techniques and procedures for all phases of general dentistry.
• Knowledge of modern dental materials their storage handling and applications is required.
• Ability to attend to multiple tasks at the same time and to prioritize assignments and responsibilities to ensure compliance with established deadlines and protocols.
• The Dental Assistant must be cognizant of the expectations and concerns of the centers dental patients and be able to respond in an empathetic and professional manner.
• The ability to work with persons from a wide diversity of social ethnic and economic backgrounds is necessary.
• The Dental Assistant must be able to creatively work with other health care professionals from a variety of disciplines to achieve maximal results for the centers patient from a system of integrated primary health care.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

Prolonged sitting or standing may be required. Those physical movements and the degree of mobility manual dexterity and handeye coordination normally associated with dental assisting in general practice dentistry will be performed on a repetitive basis. The ability to distinguish letters and symbols as well as the ability to utilize telephones computer terminals and copiers is required. Work under stressful conditions as well as irregular hours may be required. Frequent exposure to communicable disease body fluids toxic substances medicinal preparations radiation and other conditions common to a clinical environment may routinely be encountered.

CCAP strives to cultivate and sustain a workforce devoted to providing compassionate and respectful care to all patients and clients. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race color religion sex (including pregnancy sexual orientation and gender identity) national origin age disability genetic information marital status familial status military status or any other characteristic protected by federal state or local law.

Our Benefits

Our comprehensive benefits package includes 403(b) health insurance vision and dental insurance life insurance long term disability flexible spending accounts health reimbursement accounts tuition reimbursement up to $1000 annually Employee Assistance Program generous vacation sick and personal days and up to 13 available paid holidays for fulltime employees and some benefits are included for parttime employees.