Allied Dental
Expanded Duty Dental Assisting
The Expanded Duty Dental Assisting program includes instruction in restorative dentistry and preventive oral care. Learning activities include teaching patients oral self-care, applying sealants to the grooves of patients’ teeth, producing diagnostically acceptable intraoral radiographs (x-rays), polishing teeth and fillings, assisting the dentist, preparing the filling materials, scheduling patients and managing health information and monitoring nitrous oxide-sedation.
Employment opportunities in South Carolina include private practice; i.e., as chair-side Expanded Duty Dental Assistants, treatment coordinators, OSHA compliance specialists, dental laboratory assistants, secretarial assistants and office managers. There are also opportunities in community-based settings, hospital dental practices, prison dental clinics and insurance companies.
Related careers include dental product sales representative, infection control consultant for private dental office, dental office business manager and Expanded Duty Dental Assisting educator.
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS
Students must receive a grade of “C” or better on all Expanded Duty Dental Assisting courses. Students are required to pass a comprehensive examination in each semester in a clinical course to continue in the program the following semester. Additionally, they must pass a final comprehensive exit examination to graduate from the program. Students may not repeat an Expanded Duty Dental Assisting course more than once, nor may they progress to the next semester until that course is passed. Students may repeat only two Expanded Duty Dental Assisting courses.
Students are encouraged to join the Student American Dental Assistants’ Association and to participate in its scheduled activities, including attendance at the annual meeting of the South Carolina Dental Assistants’ Association. In addition, they are required to participate in scheduled activities, such as visits to elementary schools for dental health educational presentations, and to take three national examinations (Infection Control Exam, Radiation Health and Safety, General Chairside).
Students will rotate through private dental offices and community-based clinics in the immediate area for practical experience in Expanded Duty Dental Assisting.