Dental Hygienist

Azalea City Family Dentistry • Full-time • Valdosta, Georgia, United States • $37 - $42 / hour • 1m ago

Dental Hygienist Job Description

Dental Hygienist

Reports to: the Dentist

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsible for providing hygiene treatment to patients

SPECIFIC DUTIES

Patient Management

Review daily schedule with the administrative assistant for hygiene patients
Work with administrative assistant to schedule hygiene patients with efficiency
Review patient health and dental history forms and update as necessary
Accurately chart each patient’s periodontal health
Perform thorough and gentle prophylaxis to patients
Perform scaling, root planning, and selective polishing for patients as appropriate
Polish restorations
Administer local anesthetics, if allowed by dental practice act
Place medicaments subgingivally (under the gumline) for periodontal disease treatment
Take radiographs of patients as prescribed by dentist
Apply cavity-preventative agents, such as fluorides and sealants
Communicate with patients in an understandable and professional way
Check on patient comfort during treatment and help allay patient anxiety
Accurately and appropriately record provided treatment
Teach proper oral hygiene techniques to patients
Counsel patients on oral health, including the role of nutrition
Perform other tasks assigned by the dentist

Treatment Room Management and Sterilization

Check treatment room for cleanliness and make necessary changes
Check and turn on treatment room equipment
Gather and review patient charts for the day
Clean treatment room at the end of the day and turn off equipment
Maintain a supply inventory for hygiene treatment
Review, select and submit orders for patient education materials for the practice
Submit supply orders to business manager once a month or as necessary
Properly discard all disposable items from each visit
Assemble soiled instruments and place in sterilization area
Clean treatment room surfaces with disinfectant solution
Pre-soak soiled instruments in a disinfectant
Sort and package instruments by tray for proper sterilization
Load, activate, and vent the sterilization unit according to manufacturer’s directions
Store instruments and trays in appropriate places

Records Management

Securely store and handle patient records in compliance with office policies and procedures and applicable legal requirements, such as the HIPAA privacy and security regulations
Accurately record medical and dental histories
Accurately file patient information
Arrange patient charts
Assist in the administration of the recall system

Office Participation

PERSONNEL REQUIREMENTS

Education/Experience

Must be licensed to practice in state and meet other applicable state requirements
Must have completed at least 2 years of post-secondary education from an accredited dental hygiene program
Experience providing prophylaxis and taking X-rays
Legible handwriting for notations in patient chart

Interpersonal

Good interpersonal skills to maintain effective rapport with patients, dentists and coworkers
Effective verbal skills to communicate with patients and staff'

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