Dental Services career pathway

A certified community health worker contributes to improving health outcomes by serving the community in which they reside or share a similar ethnicity, language, socioeconomic status, or life experience. The term “community health worker,” includes but is not limited to other titles such as outreach worker, patient navigator, and promotores de salud.

A dental assistant performs limited clinical duties under the direction of a licensed dentist. Clinical duties may include equipment preparation and sterilization, preparing patients for treatment, assisting the dentist during treatment, and providing patients with instructions for oral healthcare procedures. May perform administrative duties such as scheduling appointments, maintaining medical records, billing, and coding information for insurance purposes.

A dental laboratory technician constructs and repairs full or partial dentures and other dental appliances. Duties include working in a dental laboratory crafting custom devices such as crowns, bridges, dentures, orthodontic devices, and implants based on dentist specifications. Utilizes various materials, including metals, ceramics, and polymers, to create precise and detailed dental products.

An expanded function dental assistant performs under the supervision of a licensed dentist, such as coronal polishing, placing and condensing amalgam restoration and other restorative materials, fluoride treatments, including fluoride varnish, placing and removing rubber dams among other functions.

A registered dental hygienist administers oral hygiene services to patients. Clinical duties include assessing a patient for oral hygiene problems or needs, maintain health records, educate patients on oral health maintenance and disease prevention. They may also provide advanced care such as providing fluoride treatment or administering topical anesthesia.

A public dental hygiene practitioner is a licensed dental hygienist with an additional certification that can perform select educational, preventive, therapeutic and intra-oral procedures in public health settings without the authorization, assignment or examination of a dentist.

A certified school dental hygienist is a licensed dental hygienist with an educational specialist certificate to address the dental care needs of school-aged children in school settings that have a dental hygiene services program. Duties include developing and presenting educational and preventive dental health programs and services to students; providing supplemental instruction in the care and preservation of teeth, dental appliances, and dental hygiene; and perform dental screenings to students in lieu of a dentist's exam.

A dentist is a primary care provider for oral health. They diagnose, treat, and manage overall oral health, including routine checkups, fillings, extractions, preventive care, and patient education.