Dental Assisting Program
As important members of the dental health team, dental assistants provide a wide-range of clinical skills such as maintaining optimal infection control protocol, manipulation of dental materials, exposing and processing x-rays, polishing teeth, giving fluoride treatments, taking impressions and fabricating temporary crowns.
Administrative duties include inventory control, record keeping and office procedures. Clinical and administrative skills offer a variety of challenging opportunities for dental assisting professionals.
The Dental Assisting Program
is a post-graduate program.
Course Content
Introduction to Dental Assisting:
State Dental Practice Act, work ethics skills, dental anatomy, vital signs, equipment utilization.

Dental Assisting I :
Principles of chairside assisting, instrumentation for general/specialty practices, dental procedures, OSHA protocol, terminology, charting
Clinical Practice :
Infection control, instrument transfer, tray set-ups, clinical assignments in area dental practicesentatives for dental distributors.

Radiology:
Theory of ionizing radiation, exposing dental x-rays, processing films, mounting
Dental Materials and Procedures:
Restorative procedures such as amalgam and composite restorations, manipulation of impression materials, manipulation of dental cements, pouring up models

Expanded Functions:
Temporary crown fabrication, taking primary impressions, applying periodontal dressings, making athletic mouthguards, placing and removing amalgam matrix bands and retainers, etc.
Information Processing:
Fundamentals of computer skills, word processing, scheduling software Total Quality Management

Related College Studies
Dental Laboratory Technology, Dental Hygienist

Articulation Agreements
Middlesex Community College, Mt. Ida College

Typical Job Opportunities
Employment opportunities exist in private and group practices, specialty practices such as surgery and orthodontics, dental school clinics, hospitals, insurance companies, and as sales representative