The incumbent of this position is responsible for performing the duties of a dental assistant in a hospital-based dental clinic at the Chillicothe VA Medical Center. The incumbent serves as a staff dental assistant at the full performance level for routine patient care and performs a full range of duties with indirect supervision from the treating dentist and dental supervisors.

Duties

The incumbent of this position is responsible for performing the duties of a dental assistant in a hospital-based dental clinic at the Chillicothe VA Medical Center. The incumbent serves as a staff dental assistant at the full performance level for routine patient care and performs a full range of duties with indirect supervision from the treating dentist and dental supervisors. Performs assigned selected procedures with some independence. Assists the dentist in many aspects of direct patient care and performs other clinical, clerical, and administrative functions independently of direct supervision. Duties of this position include, but are not limited to: Passes instruments safely, accurately, and efficiently. Keeps operative field clear of debris and retracts oral tissues effectively and comfortably. Prepares dental medicaments and impression materials per manufacturer's instructions. Accomplishes all intra-operative procedures within standard infection control protocols. Properly stores and maintains adequate levels of supplies in assigned rooms and operatories. If, at any time, the incumbent notices any supplies running low in the supply room, he/she immediately notifies the responsible person so that supplies can be reordered. Ensures instruments and unapproved items are not left in operatory during non-patient care hours. Engages in full service dental assisting for all areas of dental clinical practice. Completes laboratory and scheduling duties in support of dental service. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:30am to 4:00 pm Compressed/Flexible:Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 91682-A; 91683-A; 91684-A; 91836-0 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. 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. 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). 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 You must have one of the following: 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). Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.GS-6 (Full Performance Level): Experience: You must have one year experience equivalent to the GS-5 grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level. This experience includes: 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 four handed 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. Candidates must also demonstrate all of the knowledge, skills, and abilities below: 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. Abilty 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. Ability to perform dental assistant-appropriate laboratory procedures. Assignment for the Grade 6. Employee serves at the full performance level with the ability to perform full range of duties with some independence in assigned specialties, with indirect supervision from the lead dental assistant, dental assistant supervisor or treating dentist. Assignments at this level include, but are not limited to: using the concepts of four-handed dentistry; assists with specialty procedures including oral surgery, periodontal therapy, endodontic, prosthodontic and implant placement and restoration; anticipates surgeons/specialists needs at each stage of treatment; takes preliminary impressions; selects and manipulates a variety of gypsums and waxes; pours, trims and evaluates the quality of diagnostic casts; fabricates custom trays. References: VA Handbook 5005, Appendix G36, Dental Assistant Basic Life Support certification preferred. Physical Requirements: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand and walk. This work requires long periods of standing and walking as well as considerable bending and stooping. Patient mental and physical status will require the incumbent to be able to assist patients during transfer that is required of examinations and treatment. The incumbent of this position is expected to understand, remember, and apply oral and/or written instructions or other information; understand, remember, and communicate routine, factual information; understand problems and to collaborate and explore alternative solutions; understand opposing points of view and to integrate different viewpoints; organize thoughts and ideas into understandable terminology; organize and prioritize own work schedule; countaccurately; and understand and follow basic instructions and guidelines.

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on 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: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Chillicothe VA Medical Center 17273 State Route 104 Chillicothe, OH 45601 US
• Name: Katelyn Clark
• Phone: 740-773-1141 X17353
• Email: [email protected]