Description:
The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System is recruiting for a Dental Assistant. The Dental Assistant will function in Dental Service.Requirements:
IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.BASIC REQUIREMENTS
Citizenship: Citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified candidates in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part.)
English Language Proficiency: Dental assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part.
Experience and Education:
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).Certification in basic life support methods is highly desirable.
Certification by the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). The American Dental Association (ADA) recognizes DANB as the national certification for Dental Assistants. DANB certification is not required, but highly desirable for the appointment of Dental Assistants up to and including the full performance level, and is required for all positions above the full performance level.
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 Determination:
GRADE DETERMINATIONS
Creditable Experience
Knowledge of Current Professional Dental Assistant Practices. To be creditable, the experience must have required the use of knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs), and other characteristics (also referred to as "core competencies") associated with current professional dental assisting practice. Evidence of such experience includes graduation from a certified dental assisting training program, experience in private practice, VHA, Department of Defense (DoD), or other federal, state, community or charitable health care agency.
Quality of Experience . Experience is only creditable after the training program certifies that the individual has completed all required courses, an internship if it is part of the program, and graduated with passing grades.
Part-Time Experience. Part-time experience as a dental assistant is credited according to its relationship to full-time workweek. For example, a dental assistant would receive 1 week of full-time credit for each 2 weeks of half-time work.
GS-6: Staff Dental Assistant (Full Performance Level)
Experience : At least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-5) that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level. Some Examples of experiences at the GS-5 level include but are not limited to:
- responds to basic medical emergencies;
- measures and records vital signs;
- provides pre- and postoperative 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 fourhanded dentistry,
- assists with basic restorative procedures;
- mixes basic dental materials;
- assists in preparation of laboratory prescription forms;
- applies pressure indicator paste to removable prostheses;
- exposes and processes basic dental radiographs;
- mounts and labels dental radiographs and/or saves digital imaging to electronic medical records;
- evaluates radiographs for diagnostic quality;
- maintains routine dental equipment per manufacturer and dental service standards.
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
- Ability to identify normal oral anatomy.
- Advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized dental procedures used in all phases of restorative, surgical, endodontic and periodontal care and procedures.
- Ability to monitor and perform basic interpretation of vital signs.
- Ability to independently provide procedure-specific patient education and appropriate referral of patient concerns to treating dentist.
- Ability to capture standard and special dental images of good diagnostic quality in traditional or digital formats.
- Ability to perform maintenance on dental equipment used for routine and specialty dentistry.
- Ability to enter and retrieve data utilizing electronic dental records.
The full performance level of this position is GS-6.
References: VA HANDBOOK 5005/46 PART II APPENDIX G36
Physical Requirements: Ability to stand for at least 1hr at a time multiple times throughout a shift; use both hands to lift up to 50 lbs.
Mar 12, 2025;
from:
usajobs.gov