How To Become A Dental Assistant
Do you have an interest in public health? Well, if you love working with others, enjoy challenging yourself, and want a progressive career, try becoming a dental assistant. As a dental assistant, each day offers a challenging new task from medical office administration to public health care.
You can become a dental assistant in under a year. Enrolling in the right dental assistant course at the best dental assistant schools will kickstart your dental career. Follow our steps to becoming a Certified Dental Assistant (CDA). From taking education programs to the skills you need, we will share the best career guides.
What is a dental assistant?
A dental assistant works in a dental office, offering services from medical administrative work to helping dental procedures. Completing a variety of jobs, the dental assistant is vital to a dental team.
Perhaps unnoticed last time you went to the dentist, a dental assistant ensures that the office runs smoothly. A dental assisting career can be like a pharmacy technician, and they help the dentist by keeping dental instruments clean and readily available.
As part of the dental team, a dental assistant supports the dentist to improve the quality and efficiency of patient care. It requires customer service and technical skills, and some dental assistants may complete more technical and advanced duties.
If you have experience in healthcare administration and would like to branch out, consider becoming a dental assistant. Or, if you are considering starting your career in dental work, becoming a dental assistant is an excellent place to begin.
What does a dental assistant do?
A dental assistant works in a medical lab or dental practice, and these can be private, public, or school clinics. There are many settings for a dental assistant, and many places hire several dental assistants to work together.
Duties vary from office administration to helping with medical emergencies. While the specific role might differ depending on the employer, dental assistants tend to look after the patient, administer and assist the dentist.
A dental assistant will prepare patients for dental care. They schedule appointments, protect consumer information, practice dental charting and medical billing.
A dental assistant will often complete medical billing and coding. Medical coding involves transferring dental information, such as diagnosis and procedures, into a universal code.
They can act as a lab technician, preparing dental materials and assisting dentists during procedures, including processing x-rays and applying anesthetics.
They might also conduct an expanded function, and this involves applying salients and taking impressions. Patient care involves warning them about oral hygiene and infection control. Orthodontic assisting can also include assisting in oral surgery.
A preventive functions dental assistant instructs patients about dental care and how to look for the vital signs of an emergency. A restorative functions dental assistant will be involved in the treatment aspect of dental care.
There are many ways to become a dental assistant, and it is a quick career path with plenty of progression opportunities. Each day offers a new challenge. If you enjoy interacting with people and are interested in medical care, become a dental assistant.
Is a dental assistant a rewarding career?
A career in dental assisting is a good choice. With a good job outlook and workforce development, dental assisting jobs are highly worthwhile.
A career in dental assisting takes a relatively short time to achieve. Dental assistant training can take up to a year, while dental associates might expect around two years of training.
On the other hand, Dentist training can take up to four years and requires a bachelor’s degree. An online dental assistant program can take less than a year, and you can study it at your own pace, in your own time.
There is strong career development and progression. There is a rising demand for dental care, and the aging population has increased the number of patients with oral problems. There are many opportunities for a dental assistant to find work.
As dental research expands and new studies further understanding, there are a wealth of dental career paths. You can progress your career, becoming a dental hygienist, for example.
The job of a dental assistant is touching. Each patient, each task, and each day brings new challenges. If you get tired of repetitive duties, a dental assistant will offer variance and interest to your day.
Similarly, it is a people-focused job, and talking to a diverse range of customers will ensure you’re never bored. If you’re a social person and enjoy talking to various people, a dental assistant career might be for you.
Dental offices often offer excellent job settings, and they’re calm, peaceful, and spotless. The dental office design relaxes patients, and the setting might also do wonders to improve your mood each day.
There is also the possibility that you can become a part-time dental assistant. If you require flexibility in your job, dental assistants can often negotiate their hours with their employer. Dental assisting is a rewarding, satisfying, and exciting job.
How much do dental assistants make?
A dental assistant is a lucrative career choice. The Bureau of Labor Statistics suggests that the dental hygienist average salary is around $41,180 per year, and it also suggests that the job outlook is faster than average. Dental assistant salaries are likely to continue growing.
Each state's average salary differs. For instance, Minnesota dental assistants earn the highest at $49,880, while a dental assistant in Kentucky earns the lowest with an average of $36,060.
What skills do you need to become a dental assistant?
To become a dental assistant, you need strong interpersonal skills and technical knowledge.
A friendly, professional manner is vital to earn the patient’s trust. An excellent dental assistant has strong communication skills, and conveying the correct information to the patient is vital. From small talk to communicating complex matters, you need to ensure you can get information across.
You will also need to communicate efficiently with other members of your team and dental workers in the building. Organizational skills are crucial for a dental assistant.
Making sure your work is professional, timely, and neat will help your success. Dental rooms can be fast-paced, and patients come and go. Staying on top of paperwork and preparing the room is vital.
Staying organized is also essential to protect customer’s personal information. You don’t want to be filling out the last patient’s paperwork as the next one arrives.
Multi-tasking might also help you succeed as a dental assistant. As the jobs are varied, you will have to jump from task to task without losing track of what you are doing. Productive multi-tasking will ensure the smooth running of the dental office.
It would help if you also were adept at paying attention to details. From recording patient details to keeping equipment sterile, you need to be meticulous. You must be willing to learn.
Continuous learning and understanding of new processes and oral health will make you a better dental assistant. At the same time, you also need to be able to follow strict instructions. Protocols are in place in a dental office for the safety of the patients, and you must adhere to them.
Fine motor skills will also help. A dental assistant must carefully handle instruments and tools, and using their hands to help the dentist is an integral part of the role.
A technical understanding of oral anatomy and the anatomy and physiology of the head and neck is also beneficial. Also, awareness of preventative and restorative functions, dental hygiene, and surgical technology will help.
You will learn a lot of the technical skills you need with on-the-job training. However, if you want to get a head start on your career, dental assistance programs can help. A certificate program will also look good on your resume.
How long does it take to become a dental assistant?
It does not take long to become a dental assistant, and usually, the process is complete within a year, beyond a strong understanding of health and safety and the requisite skills.
A degree or certificate is not required to become a dental assistant. That said, a dental assistant certification will look especially impressive on your resume. A course such as a Clinical Dental Assistant Online Certificate Course can take as little as forty hours to complete.
Training programs can take up to a year to complete, depending on how much time you commit to your dental assistant schooling. The program length of dental assistant training usually takes nine months.
You can join the American Dental Assistants Association to further your dental assistant education, and it does not require certification.
Do you need a degree to be a dental assistant?
You do not need a degree to become a dental assistant, and degree programs take years and cost a lot more than receiving an online education.
To become a dental assistant, you need a school diploma. Science subjects, such as biology, chemistry, and health science, are beneficial.
There aren’t any education requirements beyond this. If you want to progress beyond being a dental assistant, you might need to go to a vocational school or community college to get an associate degree.
Dental assistant jobs are entry-level and offer hands-on training. It might be a good idea to do voluntary work to get experience in a dental office.
Some employers might prefer you to have experience or education and training. Some states require you to have national certifications to become a dental assistant.
Make sure the Commission On Dental Accreditation recognizes your course. These training programs are affordable and do not take too long to complete.
How to become a registered dental assistant?
You need to check if your state requires you to be a certified dental assistant (CDA). Understand what your state’s regulations are.
Even if your state does not need you to be registered, employers always want you to have the highest qualifications. To become a certified dental assistant, you need to complete education and training in dental assisting.
Courses for Success offer a Dental Assistant Online Certificate Course. Students will learn how to become a dental assistant, oral health, and correct procedures on the course schedule. Students will be able to manage dental instrumentation and construct temporary restorations on this comprehensive course.
Some have prerequisites to take a registered dental assistant exam to prove your knowledge after your dental assistant course online. You can join the American Dental Association to stay up to date with dental health research.
The Dental Assisting National Board offers certification. The national board exam consists of a certified preventive functions dental assistant and certified restorative functions dental assistant component.
Once you have passed your exams, you are registered. Employers will look more favorably on registered applicants.
Why Courses for Success?
Courses for Success offers over 10,000 online courses, all of which aim to help you in your personal development and career progression. Not only that, but you can also study them anywhere and at any time, and take them at your own pace, too.
You don’t need career diplomas or specific experience to get started. From our coding courses and trading courses to design courses and developer courses, every course we offer will help boost your prospects, no matter who you are.
Beyond just the education itself, students will be issued a certificate online after completing each of the learning courses they do. Our online dental assistant courses are no exception and are recognized by industry leaders. You could make a name for yourself by signing up for a Courses for Success short course today.