The Supervisory Dental Assistant is responsible for the supervision, administrative management, and direction of dental assistants. The incumbent may be delegated full administrative and professional responsibility for planning and directing the dental- assisting activities for the service or equivalent unit at an independent outpatient clinic. The employee has full supervisory responsibility over a section or equivalent work unit which requires three or more dental assistants.

Duties

Functions: a. Supervisory Higher-Level duties: (Must comprise at least 25% of the incumbent's workload. "Other Higher-Level/Clinical" duties, if applicable, are included.) Uses advanced knowledge of dental-assisting principles in multiple areas of practice for providing guidance to staff dental assistants; Coordinates clinical workflow and assignments; Assists Dental Service Chief in dental clinic operations (e.g. policy development, equipment requests and workload analysis); Establishes and maintains effective cooperative work relationships; Effectively analyzes clinically appropriate data to optimize quality, performance, and productivity within section; Assesses dental assistant competencies; Provides performance appraisals; Manages training of dental assistants. Other Higher-Level/Clinical: Monitors, manages and responds to post-surgical bleeding; Takes final impressions for a variety of basic procedures; Performs supragingival scaling; Applies pit and fissure sealants; Places liners and bases; Places permanent restorative materials (e.g., amalgam, composite, glass ionomer) including carving and curing under supervision of dentist; Polishes final restorations after review by dentist Adjusts dentures under direction of dentist; Performs tasks defined by state credentialing boards; Responsible for imaging quality control program (troubleshoots and makes appropriate referrals for identified imaging issues); Assists in developing equipment requests and justifications based on workload analysis. b. Customer Service Shows courtesy, respect, and a positive attitude for patients, co-workers and the public; Assists customers with questions or concerns. c. Chairside Assisting Sets up operatory and/or surgery suite for planned dental procedure and cleans dental unit for timely turnover; Possesses advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized dental procedures used in all phases of restorative, surgical, endodontic and periodontal care; Monitors, and performs basic interpretation of, patient vital signs (BP, pulse, pulse oximeter) and condition during invasive treatment and during recovery period following procedure; Assists in routine general dental procedures using concepts of four-handed dentistry; 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; Assists in routine general dental procedures using concepts of four-handed dentistry; Assists in specialized dental procedures, such as oral surgery, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, implant placement and restoration; Maintains both routine and specialty dental equipment per manufacturer instructions and dental service standards; Monitors patient vital signs (BP, pulse, pulse oximeter) and condition during invasive treatment and during recovery period following procedure; Applies topical anesthetic at the injection site; Takes impressions for diagnostic casts and preliminary impressions for prosthetic fabrication; Provides procedure-specific, patient-preventative education and oral hygiene instruction; Assists in specialized dental procedures, such as oral surgery, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, implant placement and restoration; Maintains both routine and specialty dental equipment per manufacturer instructions and dental service standards; Relays patient concerns to treating dentist. Will assist dentists 80% of the time and administrative duties 20% of the time. d. Dental Imaging Possesses comprehensive knowledge of advanced imaging techniques in order to provide instruction (e.g., cephalometric, advanced panoramic imaging, TMJ, etc.); Possesses ability to identify anatomy; Exposes both standard and specialty dental imaging (i.e., TMJ, cephalometric) in traditional and/or digital formats; Modifies settings to achieve the images as requested by the provider; Captures images characterized by diagnostic quality and accurate orientation and exposure; Utilizes dental-imaging safety techniques and retakes are minimized; Accomplishes imaging requests within desired time frame. e. Infection Control and Equipment Sterilization Demonstrates proper infection-control procedures in setting up and cleaning up operatories; Disinfects oral appliances to prevent cross contamination; Properly prepares instruments for transfer to SPS for sterilization; Follows all Standard Operating Procedures for Reusable Medical Equipment; Works closely with SPS to ensure availability of instruments so that clinical care is not delayed; Demonstrates proper infection-control procedures in exposing images. Work Schedule: 0800-1630 M-F Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

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.) Experience and Education (1) Experience. Six months experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work or provides familiarity with the work. OR, (2) Education. Successful completion of a 1-year dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on [Dental] Accreditation [(CODA)]. (3) 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. (1) [] Provisions for Certification of Radiologic Competence (a) Successful completion of the Dental Radiation Health and Safety Examination administered by the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc. OR, [(b)] 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, [(c) Successful completion of a radiation health and safety program or examination approved by a state board of dentistry or the Department of Defense (DoD).] (2) Non-certified applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements for certification of radiologic competence may be given a temporary appointment as a graduate dental assistant under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405 (a) (1) (D). Failure to obtain certification during that period is justification for termination of the temporary appointment. This [will result in removal from the GS-681 series and] may result in termination of employment. (3) Certification in basic life support methods is highly desirable. [(4) 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.] [(5)] Loss of Credential. An employee in this occupation who fails to obtain licensure/certification/registration within the required time frame, or who fails to maintain the required licensure/certification/registration must be removed from the occupation, which may also result in termination of employment. Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. English Language Proficiency. Dental assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English in accordance with chapter 2, section D, paragraph 5a, this part. Grade Determinations. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. GS-8 Supervisory Dental Assistant 1. Experience. At least 1 year of experience at the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level. In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical KSAs and demonstrate the potential to acquire the assignment specific KSAs designated by an asterisk (*) 2. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities a. Advanced knowledge of dental assisting across multiple areas of practice, and the demonstrated ability to provide guidance to staff dental assistants. b. Skill in coordinating clinical workflow and assignments. c. Ability to assist the Chief in Dental Clinic operations related to policy development, equipment requests and workload analysis. d. Ability to establish and maintain effective and cooperative work relationships. e. Ability to analyze clinically appropriate data effectively to optimize quality, performance, and productivity within section. f. *Ability to perform supervisory functions such as assessing competency, providing performance appraisals and managing training. 3. Assignment. The supervisory dental assistant is responsible for the supervision, administrative management, and direction of dental assistants. The incumbent may be delegated full administrative and professional responsibility for planning and directing the dental assisting activities for the service or equivalent unit at an independent outpatient clinic. They have full supervisory responsibility over a section or equivalent work unit which would require three or more dental assistants. Typical duties include: making work assignments, monitoring of staff dental assistant clinical performance, conducting performance appraisals, and other clinical and administrative responsibilities as assigned by the Service Chief to ensure that the mission of the service and the medical center has been satisfied].

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address Durham VA Medical Center 508 Fulton Street Durham, NC 27705 US
• Name: Gary Byles
• Phone: 919-824-1988
• Email: [email protected]