Dental Assistant

The Dental Assistant assists the dentist in many aspects of direct patient care and performs other clinical and clerical functions independently of direct supervision. Work location is Fort Harrison VHA and Billings CBOC.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Duties and skills needed to be successful in this position include, but are not limited to:

1. Customer Service:
   • Shows courtesy, respect, and a positive attitude for patients, co-workers and the public.
   • Provides assistance to customers with questions or concerns, provides service recovery.
2. Chairside Assisting:
   • Sets up operatory and/or surgery suite for planned dental procedure and cleans dental unit for timely turnover.
   • 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.
   • Assists in specialized dental procedures, such as oral maxillofacial surgery, endodontics, and surgical periodontics.
3. Dental Imaging:
   • Images are characterized by diagnostic quality, accurately oriented and exposed.
   • Dental imaging safety techniques are utilized, and retakes are minimized.
   • Imaging requests are accomplished within the desired time frame .
4. Infection Control and Equipment Sterilization
   • Demonstrates proper infection control procedures in setting up and cleaning up operatories.
   • Instruments are properly prepared for sterilization by SPD standards.
   • Instruments are prepared in a manner that does not delay clinical care.
   • Demonstrates proper infection control procedures in exposing images.
5. Clerical Functions:
   • Assists patients in scheduling appointments.
   • Assists in filling gaps in the doctor's schedule due to late cancellations and failed appointments.
6. Information Management:
   • Maintains patient confidentiality per HIPAA with written and verbal information.
7. Patient Safety:
   • Modifies care as necessitated by patient's age and abilities (patient transfer and position)
   • Provides accurate and understandable instructions to patients
   • Participates in patient identification and time out per JCAHO requirements.
   • Monitors patient condition during treatment, being alert for signs of physical distress.
   • Obtain and records patient vital signs: BP, pulse, and pulse oximeter at the beginning of the dental appointment.
8. Dental Laboratory Functions:
   • Pours impressions and prepares study models.
   • Makes final denture impression trays and prepares bite rims.
9. Direct Patient Care:
   • Remove sutures and removal of periodontal surgical dressing.
   • Impressions for diagnostic casts and preliminary impressions for prosthetic fabrication.
   • Remove temporary crown/bridge and clean tooth preparation of debris.
   • Recement and fabricate temporary crowns.
   • Coronal polishing of teeth.
   • Place rubber dams and matrix bands.
   • Provides post-operative and other appropriate patient education

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00a.m. - 4:30p.m.
Compressed/Flexible: Available for highly qualified applicants.
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Not Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases. When setting pay, a higher step rate of the appropriate grade may be determined after consideration of higher or unique qualifications or special needs of the VA (Above Minimum Rate of the Grade).
Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)
Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior [work experience] or military service experience.
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 436-53270-A, 436-53271-A, 436-53272-A, 436-53273-A
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

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: Must be a US Citizen.
• Experience and Education
  • 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).
  • 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.
  • Provisions for Certification of Radiologic Competence
    • 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).
  • 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.
  • Certification in basic life support methods is highly desirable.
  • 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.
• English Language Proficiency: Dental assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English.

Grade Determinations. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Dental Assistant, GS-3

• Experience or Education. None beyond the basic requirements.

Dental Assistant, GS-4

• Experience or Education. In addition to the basic requirements, 1 year of experience at the next lower level, OR 2 years of education above high school that included completion of a dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on [Dental] Accreditation (CODA).

-AND-In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Basic knowledge of infection control and safe instrument handling.
• Basic knowledge of dental procedures and [medical emergencies.
• Ability to perform basic radiographic image capture and processing/retrieval.
• Basic knowledge of maintenance, care and storage of dental equipment.
• Basic knowledge of patient privacy requirements.

Dental Assistant, GS-5

• Experience or Education. In addition to the requirements listed at GS-4 above, applicants must demonstrate at least 1 year of experience equivalent to at the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level, OR Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study that included or was supplemented by completion of a dental assistant program by CODA.

-AND-In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Knowledge of anatomy and [ability to evaluate diagnostic quality.
• Broad knowledge of common medical emergencies and vital signs measurement.
• Basic knowledge of instruments, materials and standardized dental procedures
• Ability to learn and utilize software programs used within VHA.
• Basic communication skills to provide patient instructions according to established protocol.

Staff Dental Assistant, GS-6 (Full Performance Level)

• Experience. At least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level.

-AND-In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• 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.
• Ability 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 procedure.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-6. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-3 to GS-6.

Physical Requirements:
Physical movements involve completion of basic pharmacy functions which include but are not limited to: packaging mail, restocking shelves, maintenance of office supplies and interactions with patients and staff. Certain tasks are repetitive in nature and require multiple steps performed in succession for success. The incumbent should be able to lift and carry up to 50 pounds without significant difficulty. Incumbent must be able to stand or sit in one place for considerable time during completion of tasks.

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/.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.