What Do You Learn in Dental Assisting School?
In dental assisting school, you develop the skills and techniques you need to succeed in a dentist’s office. You learn about chairside procedures, patient care, infection control, dental radiography, preventative dentistry, and administrative dental office duties. Your program should also provide opportunities to hone your skills with hands-on assignments in the lab, and in-person experience in a local dentist’s office. Consider what you can learn in Dental Assisting school and decide if it’s right for you.
Dental Science, Language, and Pharmacology
To be a successful Dental Assistant, you need to understand the science behind dentistry. Your courses teach you about teeth, gums, and the jaw. You learn about the anatomy and physiology of the head and neck, and about pathology and oral histography. You also learn the medical language and dental terms you need to know as a Dental Assistant. Understanding these terms helps you communicate with patients and dentists. And you learn about pharmacology, how medications are prescribed as treatment for dental issues, and how these drugs might interact with other commonly prescribed medications.
Learning Chairside Procedures in Dental Assisting School
One of your main responsibilities as a Dental Assistant is to help the dentist during check-ups and oral procedures. You provide an extra pair of hands, passing off instruments and assisting the dentist during the exam. In dental assisting school, you learn important skills like four-handed dentistry, dental suction techniques, and how to retract oral tissues for a clear view into the mouth. You’re taught to prepare materials for impressions, composites, and cements, and how you can assist with root canals and extractions. In addition to the technical aspects of chairside assisting, you also learn the importance of patient care and how to provide a positive experience for every patient.
Infection Control in the Dental Office
Safety is one of the most important considerations in dentistry. Since you work in patients’ mouths, you must be careful not to transfer bacteria to them, and vice versa. Throughout your classes, safety and infection control are incorporated into the curriculum and lab work. You learn how to properly clean, sterilize, and disinfect instruments, equipment, and other materials in the dental office. You study state and federal rules that govern infection control and discover how to use personal protective equipment (PPE) to keep you and your patient safe.
Dental Radiography
Dental radiography is the practice of taking oral X-rays that are used to diagnose cavities, impacted teeth, or other problems that may not be visible to the naked eye. A patient’s X-rays also serve as a record of their oral health over time and may be taken periodically to monitor the progress of their dental health and treatment. In dental assisting school, you learn the proper procedures for taking dental X-rays, including how to position your patients, choose the right receptor size, align it properly, and how to check your images for quality. To enhance your radiography skills, your program should teach the difference between traditional and digital X-rays, and how to take images of different areas of the mouth.
Learning About Preventative Dentistry in Dental Assistant School
As a Dental Assistant, you’re also a patient educator. Your job is to teach your patients about preventative dental care. You’re taught about the link between nutrition, health, and oral care. Your coursework covers topics like pediatrics and the importance of oral care from an early age so you can pass this knowledge on to your patients. And you learn how to assist with procedures like fluoride treatments, coronal polishing, and pit and fissure sealants.
Administrative Office Procedures for Dental Assistants
When you aren’t working directly with patients in the chair, you help out in the office. You wear two hats, and your dental assistant program shows you how to smoothly transition between the two. You learn important responsibilities such as appointment scheduling, filing insurance claims, updating patient dental records, and keeping track of inventory.
Dental Assistant Externships and Laboratories
Your dental assisting courses give you plenty of hands-on training in addition to your lectures. You have the chance to work in laboratories that mimic dental exam rooms. You practice with real equipment and tools under the supervision of faculty who have experience in the field of dentistry. Toward the end of your program, you also participate in an externship that places you in a local dentist’s office for additional hands-on training.
Are you ready to enroll in dental assisting school? Charter College offers a Certificate in Dental Assisting that can prepare you for an entry-level career in the field. The program is taught in a blended learning format with in-person and online components for convenience. Call 888-200-9942 or fill out the form to learn more.