Were you aware of how important dental assistants are?
A dental assistant is a core part of any dental office because they perform many tasks that keep the office running. Without dental assistants, dentists would have a hard time completing everything. As a result, they’d need to significantly reduce the number of patients they can see daily.
If you’ve ever been interested in becoming a dental assistant, you should know what they do. Dental assistant jobs aren’t hard to find, and training can be completed in just a few years.
Read on to learn about the daily duties of a dental assistant and how to become one!
Daily Duties
When people think of a dental assistant, they often think of someone who stands by a dentist’s side when doing procedures. However, a dental assistant has many responsibilities that make them crucial to the success of any dental office.
Dental assistance is a high-demand job with many benefits. Working in a dental office as a dental assistant will require various tasks, which will give you a ton of experience.
Help With Procedures
One of the main things a dental assistant does is help a dentist with treatments and procedures. Whether handing the dentist the proper tools, doing routine cleaning, or helping with surgery, the assistant will be there for whatever needs to be done.
Take X-Rays and Impressions
Another thing they do is take and develop x-rays. Whenever new patients come into the office, they’ll need to examine their teeth so the dentist can determine what they need. If teeth are damaged or misaligned, the dental assistant will take an x-ray to assess their condition.
They may also take impressions of a patient’s teeth whenever they get retainers or braces. Throughout these processes, they’ll make the patient feel as comfortable as possible.
Perform Office Management Tasks
Although most dental offices have receptionists, a dental assistant may answer phone calls, schedule appointments, and keep track of inventory. This isn’t common, but it does happen in smaller offices that want to reduce payroll expenses.
They may also record patient information when they’re new to the office. They’ll provide a patient with forms to fill out, and then they’ll enter the information into the computer.
Work in All Specialties
The world of dentistry has many different specialties, all of which a dental assistant will learn. Orthodontics, pediatrics, periodontics, and oral surgery are all specialties that dental assistants see and learn daily. This allows them to become more comfortable in their field, making them better assistants.
Skills Required
Before looking into dental assistant jobs, you should understand the skills required. Dentistry is a complex field that requires many skills due to the nature of the work, but most people shouldn’t have a hard time entering.
Technical
A dental assistant needs to be extremely technical when helping a dentist perform procedures. They must know how to operate all of the equipment in the office and about the procedures so that they can organize everything beforehand.
If there’s a den, they must be able to spot it. They should have a dental emergency. Because oral procedures involve risk, dental assistants must be trained in CPR. They must communicate clearly with patients to ensure they understand what’s happening. They must also know how to comfort them because many people have difficulty going to the dentist. Friendliness and compassion are something that many dental offices look for in assistants.
Administration
Even if a dental office has a receptionist, dental assistants must know how to operate computers. During dental assistant training, they’ll learn how to perform office management tasks to maintain the office whenever needed.
How to Become a Dental Assistant
Becoming a dental assistant would be a great opportunity for those seeking a good income. The average salary is $38,447, a decent job that doesn’t require much education.
The exact steps to becoming a dental assistant will vary depending on the state. However, many dental assistants go through technical programs because they’re given much time to focus on dentistry instead of other subjects.
Having a diploma is best because it will make you more likely to get a job. It will also make it easier for you to transition into an office in another state, which may have different requirements.
You can look at this academy to get a good idea of a typical dental school. When entering a school, you’ll come out with a degree and certifications for dentistry that will prepare you to enter dentistry as soon as possible.
Consider Becoming a Dental Assistant Today
After reading this article, you now understand what a dental assistant is and how to become one. We encourage anyone looking for dentistry experience to become a dental assistant.
After gaining experience, you can eventually become a dentist and earn much more than the typical dental assistant pay. Look into your state’s requirements for becoming a dental assistant. From there, you can figure out which steps to go through to become one.
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