Dental Assistant Program

Dental Assistants provide quality preventative and corrective dental care under direct supervision of the Dentist or Dental Hygienist. The Dental Assistant is responsible for assisting dentists and dental hygienists with patient care as well as providing certain administrative support to the office.

Dental Assistants - Employment & Education

Dental Assistants work in a variety of health care settings including dentist offices, hospitals and other similar facilities. With the national increase in health care related services and the national shortage of health care professionals, the need for Dental Assistants is growing substantially.

Educational Requirements*
Most employers prefer that dental assistants and aides have a high school diploma or equivalent. There are state and national examinations that test the competency of Dental Assistants and which often lead to a Dental Assistant / Hygienist certification.

Dental Assistant Program
The 60 hour Dental Assisting Program prepares students for entry level positions in one of the fastest growing health care positions - Dental Assisting. The purpose of this course is to familiarize the student with all areas of pre-clinical dental assisting and provide training in the professional skills required to function as an assistant in the dental practice.

This course covers the following key areas and topics – Administrative Aspects: the history of dentistry and dental assisting; introduction to the dental office; the legal aspects of dentistry and dental assisting; policies and guidelines. Clinical Aspects include: introduction to oral anatomy; dental operatory; dental equipment, operation, and maintenance; introduction to tooth structure; primary and permanent teeth; the oral cavity and related structures; proper patient positioning; dental hand-pieces; dental anesthesia; sterilization; maintaining sterility and asepsis and other areas.

In addition to entry-level administrative jobs, this course is ideal for students interested in pursuing a future formal Dental Hygienist program. The program includes graded quizzes and exams.

NOTE: This program does not include a national or state certification objective which in most states requires 1 to 2 years of training or education.

Dental Assistant Detailed Course Information

• Describe dental specialties and the history of dentistry
• Identify the members of the dental staff and general job descriptions.
• Identify and name the parts of the jaw and areas of the mouth.
• Oral embryology and histology.
• Tooth charting, tooth surfaces and classification of restorations on a tooth.
• Identify a single crown restoration, bridge, implant, partial denture, and full denture.
• Overview of dentitions
• Periodontal disease and preventative dentistry
• Identify and name dental equipment and accessories/equipment in a treatment room.
• Oral pathology, microbiology, disease transmission and Infection Control
• Principles and techniques of Instrument processing and sterilization
• Chemical and waste management.
• Dental unit water lines.
• Dental hand pieces and accessories
• Moisture control
• Dental cements, impression materials and general dentistry
• Endodontics, periodontics and oral maxiofacial surgery

Course Schedule

Dental Assistant Program
Course No.	C091217
Course Fee	$1,199
Date	Mondays and Wednesdays, March 9 - May 4, 2009 (15 meetings)
Time	6:00 PM - 9:30 PM
Length	60 hours
Location	Cal State L.A. Campus, Golden Eagle Room 219
Instructor	Condensed Curriculum International

For register information click here: http://www.calstatela.edu/exed/reginfo.htm
For more information contact Alice M. Gutierrez at agutier@cslanet.calstatela.edu or (323) 343-4916.