DENTAL ASSISTANTS are part of the dental care team that helps dentists during dental exams and treatments. The Dental Assistant gets patients ready for examination and makes sure they are as relaxed and comfortable as possible. Working chair-side, the Dental Assistant hands instruments and materials to the dentist and dries the patient's mouth with suction equipment during treatments. The Assistant may also mix filling compounds, take impressions of teeth, and provide patients with postoperative instructions.

Dental Assistants perform a variety of patient care, office, and laboratory duties. The following are the most common tasks a Dental Assistant may do:

• Prepares patient for treatment.
• Selects and hands instruments to the dentist during dental procedures.
• Sterilizes and disinfects instruments.
• Sets up instrument trays.
• Suctions the patient's mouth.
• Applies fluoride coating to teeth.
• Pours, trims, and polishes study casts.
• Examines orthodontic appliances.
• Exposes dental diagnostic X rays.
• Schedules appointments, prepares bills, and receives payment for dental services.

Registered Dental Assistants (RDA) and Registered Dental Assistants in Extended Functions (RDAEF), perform more complex patient care tasks under the direct supervision of a licensed dentist. The supervising dentist checks the Assistant's work before the patient leaves the office.

The Registered Dental Assistant may do some of the same duties as the Dental Assistant. Some of the more complex tasks are:

• Applies bleaching agents.
• Makes and cements temporary crowns.
• Looks into the mouth with a mirror and charts dental information about lesions and missing teeth.
• Places post-extraction and periodontal dressings.
• Records medical and dental histories and vital signs of patients.

Registered Dental Assistants must complete a State Dental Examiners Board approved extended functions training program before performing more advanced patient care tasks. The RDAEF may perform some of the same duties as both Dental and Registered Dental Assistants. Some of the extended function tasks are:

• Takes impressions for orthodontic appliances and cast restorations.
• Prepares enamel for bonding.
• Applies pit and fissure sealants.

• Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping the hand and arm steady while making an arm movement or while holding the arm and hand in one position.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
• Active Listening - Listening to what other people are saying and asking questions as appropriate.
• Finger Dexterity - Making precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.
• Equipment Selection - Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
• Computers - Knowing how to use a variety of software packages.

Dental Assistants work in pleasant, well-lighted dental offices and clinics. The position requires some walking, standing, standing from a seated position, and reaching for instruments. In today's modern dental offices, Assistants generally sit next to the patient.

Working with and calming nervous patients may be stressful at times. The workload may be fast paced, depending upon the patient caseload of the dental practice. Also, Dental Assistants may be exposed to possible hazards from minor infections and illnesses. However, the risks are reduced when proper safety procedures are followed and protective garments are worn, such as gloves, face shield or mask, gown, and lead shields for Assistants handling X ray equipment.

To date, there has been little or no unionization of Dental Assistants.

The projected growth rate of 43.2 percent indicates that Dental Assistant occupations are growing much faster than average compared with all California occupations.

Future employment opportunities will increase, driven by the growth of an aging population more prone to gum disease and related dental health conditions. Another factor contributing to the high demand for dental services is that people are keeping their natural teeth longer.