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Dental Assistant

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration
This job announcement has closed

Summary

This position is located in Dental Service, Boise VA Medical Center, Boise, Idaho.

Assists the dentist in many aspects of direct patient care and performs other clinical and clerical functions independently of direct supervision.


Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
05/29/2024 to 06/10/2024
Salary
$47,695 to - $62,000 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 6
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Boise, ID
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
CBSV-12430803-24-ASD
Control number
793421300

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Duties

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  • Provides assistance to customers with questions or concerns, provides service recovery.
  • Sets up operatory for planned dental procedure and cleans dental unit for timely turnover.
  • Assists in routine general dental procedures.
  • Assists in specialized dental procedures, such as oral surgery, endodontics, and periodontics.
  • Dental imaging safety techniques are utilized, and retakes are minimized.
  • Demonstrates proper infection control procedures in setting up and cleaning up operatories.
  • Assists dentist in charting findings and treatment plans in patient records.
  • Maintains patient confidentiality per HIPAA with written and verbal information.
  • Performs other dental laboratory functions as time and skill levels allow.
Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 0800-1630
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
  • All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
  • Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
  • You may be required to serve a probationary period.
  • Subject to background/security investigation.
  • Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
  • Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details.
  • Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit e-verify.gov

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:
United States Citizenship: Be a Citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.

English Language Proficiency: Dental assistants must be proficient in spoken and written English.

Experience and Education:

  • Experience. Six months experience that demonstrates the applicant's ability to perform the work, or provides familiarity with the work. OR,
  • Education: Successful completion of a 1-year dental assistant program accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA). OR,
  • Experience/Education Combination. Equivalent combinations of experience and education are qualifying
Grade Determinations for GS-6 Dental Assistant:
Experience: At least 1 year of experience at the next lower grade level or equivalent that demonstrates the core competencies described at that level.

In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following technical Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSAs):
  • Ability to identify normal oral anatomy.
  • Advanced knowledge of instruments, materials, and standardized dental procedures used in all phases of restorative, surgical, endodontic and periodontal care and procedures.
  • Ability to monitor and perform basic interpretation of vital signs.
  • Ability to independently provide procedure-specific patient education and appropriate referral of patient concerns to treating dentist.
  • Ability to capture standard and special dental images of good diagnostic quality in traditional or digital formats.
  • Ability to perform maintenance on dental equipment used for routine and specialty dentistry.
  • Ability to enter and retrieve data utilizing electronic dental records.
  • Ability to perform dental assistant-appropriate laboratory procedures.
Reference: VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Appendix G-36

Education

IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit or Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

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