Dental Assistant

Veterans Health Administration • White City, OR

16d • Onsite

About The Position

The Dental Assistant prepares the operatory and/or surgery suite for planned dental procedures and cleans the dental unit to support timely turnover. The role requires advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized procedures used in restorative, surgical, endodontic, and periodontal care.

The Dental Assistant supports routine and specialized dental procedures, including oral surgery, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, and implant placement and restoration. Duties include assisting with four-handed dentistry; safely and efficiently passing instruments; maintaining a clear operative field; preparing medicaments and impression materials; following infection-control protocols; monitoring and interpreting basic vital signs; and providing patient education and oral-hygiene instruction. The position also performs dental laboratory tasks such as taking and pouring impressions, preparing study models, making denture impression trays and bite rims, cleaning removable prostheses, and fabricating athletic mouth guards and bleaching trays.

The stated schedule is Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Compressed or flexible scheduling is available. Telework is not available, and the position is not virtual. The vacancy's full performance level is GS-6; selection may be at GS-3 through GS-6.

Requirements

• Must be a U.S. citizen, subject to the stated exception under VA policy for non-citizens when qualified citizens cannot be recruited.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Must meet the applicable experience or education combination for the selected grade; grade requirements range from no additional experience or education at GS-3 to qualifying experience or education at higher grades.
• Must meet radiologic competence requirements through an accepted dental radiation health and safety examination, approved coursework and examinations, or an approved state-board or Department of Defense program. Eligible non-certified applicants may receive a temporary appointment under the stated conditions and must obtain certification during that period.
• For GS-4, qualifying experience or education is required, along with basic knowledge of infection control and safe instrument handling, dental procedures and medical emergencies, radiographic image capture and processing/retrieval, dental equipment care and storage, and patient privacy.
• For GS-5, qualifying experience or education is required, along with knowledge of anatomy and diagnostic image quality, common medical emergencies and vital-sign measurement, dental instruments/materials/procedures, ability to learn VHA software, and communication skills for patient instructions.
• For GS-6, at least one year of qualifying experience at the next lower grade is required, along with the specified technical knowledge and abilities, including oral anatomy, advanced dental procedures, vital-sign monitoring and interpretation, patient education and referral, dental imaging, equipment maintenance, electronic dental records, and dental-assistant laboratory procedures.
• Must complete required pre-employment screening, including a drug test if tentatively selected for a testing-designated position, background/security investigation, E-Verify, and onboarding requirements.
• Must meet applicable Selective Service registration requirements for males born after December 31, 1959.
• Must participate in required seasonal influenza and COVID-19 vaccination programs, subject to legally required accommodations.
• May be required to serve a probationary period.
• Must provide acceptable identification for employment verification; beginning May 7, 2025, non-REAL-ID-compliant driver's licenses or state identification cards cannot be used as acceptable identification.

Nice To Haves

• Certification in basic life support methods is highly desirable.
• Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) certification is highly desirable for appointments up to and including the full performance level; it is required for positions above the full performance level.

Responsibilities

• Prepare the operatory and/or surgery suite for planned dental procedures and clean the dental unit for timely turnover.
• Assist with routine general dental procedures using four-handed dentistry.
• Pass instruments safely, accurately, and efficiently; keep the operative field clear and retract oral tissues effectively and comfortably.
• Prepare dental medicaments and impression materials according to manufacturers' instructions.
• Perform intra-operative procedures in accordance with standard infection-control protocols.
• Monitor and perform basic interpretation of patient vital signs, including blood pressure, pulse, and pulse oximeter readings, and observe patient condition during invasive treatment and recovery.
• Apply topical anesthetic at the injection site.
• Take impressions for diagnostic casts and preliminary impressions for prosthetic fabrication; pour impressions and prepare study models.
• Make final denture impression trays and prepare bite rims.
• Remove plaque and soft debris from removable prostheses.
• Provide procedure-specific preventive education, oral-hygiene instruction, post-operative education, and other appropriate patient education.
• Assist with specialized procedures, including oral surgery, endodontics, periodontics, prosthodontics, and implant placement and restoration.
• Fabricate athletic mouth guards and bleaching trays.
• Perform other dental laboratory functions as needed.
• Capture standard and special dental images of diagnostic quality, maintain dental equipment, and enter and retrieve data using electronic dental records, as applicable to the role.

Benefits

• 37–50 days of annual paid time off per year, comprising 13–26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, and 11 paid federal holidays.
• Up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave after 12 months of employment, in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster-care placement of a child.
• Eligible full-time employees may qualify for a childcare subsidy after 60 days of employment, subject to family-income and other eligibility limits; subsidy may cover up to 25% of eligible childcare costs, up to a stated monthly maximum of $416.66.
• Traditional federal pension, with five-year vesting, and federal 401(k) with up to 5% in contributions by VA.
• Federal health, vision, dental, term-life, and long-term-care insurance; many federal insurance programs may be carried into retirement.
• Prior federal or military service may be credited toward annual leave accrual if requested and approved before appointment.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed