Dental Assistant

This position is within the Dental Program located at the Syracuse VA Medical Center. The position entails a wide range of intra-oral dental procedures and provides chair-side assistance in the clinic and operating room setting. The incumbent assists with, performs and educates patients regarding intra-oral procedures associated with various phases of restorative (prosthodontic and maxillofacial prosthetic), periodontal, endodontic, and oral surgery procedures.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Major Duties:

GENERAL

• Maintain dental equipment in a clean and operative condition.
• Provide 4-handed dentistry that includes patient seating, draping, retraction, suction and passing of instruments.
• Support and follow all infectious disease policies including proper management of Reusable Medical Equipment (RME).
• Independently provides procedure-specific patient education, including preventive dental care and pre-and post-operative instruction. Refers patient concerns to a treating dentist.
• Explain elementary rationale for prescribed dental treatments.
• Take preliminary medical histories and interprets vital signs to be reviewed by the dentist.
• Enter, record, and retrieve information related to the medical and dental history as relayed to the dentist or patient.
• Phone triage of patients to determine whether requires licensed provider attention.
• Take impressions for study casts, diagnostic casts, or occlusal guards.
• Responsible for more than one dentist when required by the clinic.
• Maintain current required training.
• Other dental supportive services authorized by the licensed dentist while the Registered Dental
• Responsible for Dental Unit Waterline disinfection.

RESTORATIVE DENTISTRY AND PROSTHODONTICS

• Aid in tooth shade selection.
• Fabricate provisional crowns.
• Place and remove matrix bands.
• Select and pre-fit provisional crowns.
• Remove temporary cement (not including temporary fillings).
• Apply desensitizing agents to teeth.

PERIODONTICS

• Remove sutures placed by a licensed dentist.
• Remove protective surgical dressings.

ENDODONTICS

• Place and remove rubber dam.
• Maintain entire inventory for endodontic instrument.

RADIOGRAPHY

• Ability to capture standard and special dental images of good diagnostic quality in traditional or digital formats.
• Performs the full range of dental radiography, including cone beam CT.
• Take radiographs of inpatients and outpatients according to prescription including periapical, bitewing, occlusal extra-oral (lateral jaw AP) etc., and panoramic radiograph.
• Know how to electronically request and record digital images.
• Correctly position patients and films/sensor to achieve proper radiographic angles.
• Checks all images to assure diagnostic quality and clarity to enable the examining dentist to have maximum radiographic information.

ORAL SURGERY

• Has advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized dental procedures in all phases of restorative, endodontic, and periodontal care and procedures.
• Route patients for further medical testing when required.
• Assist dentist in dental assistant-appropriate procedures, such as implants.
• Maintain sterility according to clinic and medical center procedures.
• Keep inventory of all equipment and supplies and informs supervisor when supplies are inadequate.
• Prepare instruments sterile trays, equipment and materials and assumes that they are present and properly arranged for the operative procedure.
• Preparation of general anesthesia, I.V., and oxygen anesthesia equipment.
• Maintain the crash cart including drug management.

Other duties as required.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 7:30am-4:00pm
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 #: 21X45-A

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 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.

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).

Grandfathering Provision. All persons employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including certification (for positions above the full performance level)] that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:

(1) Such employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level, or [changed to lower grade] within the occupation, but may not be promoted beyond the journey level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions. Such employees [MUST] meet the [certification] requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels.
(2) Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed, on a temporary or permanent basis, until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.
(3) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation, who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation.
(4) If an employee who was retained under this provision leaves the occupation, the employee loses protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of reentry to the occupation.

Grade Determinations:

GS-6 Staff Dental Assistant (Full Performance Level)

(a) Experience. At least 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level.In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical KSAs.

(b) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
1. Ability to identify normal oral anatomy.
2. Advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized dental procedures used in all phases of restorative, surgical, endodontic and periodontal care and procedures.
3. Ability to monitor and perform basic interpretation of vital signs.
4. Ability to independently provide procedure-specific patient education and appropriate referral of patient concerns to treating dentist.
5. Ability to capture standard and special dental images of good diagnostic quality in traditional or digital formats.
6. Ability to perform maintenance on dental equipment used for routine and specialty dentistry.
7. Ability to enter and retrieve data utilizing electronic dental records.
8. Ability to perform dental assistant-appropriate laboratory procedures

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-06. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-06.

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019. Work is sedentary but also demands standing, walking, bending, twisting, and carrying light items.

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.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• 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.
• Must pass pre-employment physical evaluation/examination.
• 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.