Explore a Career in a Dental Office

About This Course

Find a career to fit your skills and personality as you go behind the scenes in a typical dental office.

In this course, you’ll explore the many jobs open to you in the dental field—dentist, dental hygienist, clinical dental assistant, administrative dental assistant, office manager, and dental lab technician. To decide which one is just right for you, you’ll investigate the education you need for each job, learn which dental office careers require licensing, and check out the job prospects in each area.

In addition, you’ll master basic dental terminology and anatomy, discover how to create a patient chart, and identify the privacy rules that are crucial to proper dental office management. You’ll also delve into dental disease, its prevention, and its treatment.

By the time you’re done, you’ll know all about the professional teamwork that goes into creating healthy smiles. You’ll fully understand the role of each person in a dental office—and you’ll know which dental career is the perfect one for you!

About The Instructor

This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Cindy Lamkin.

Cindy Lamkin has been employed in the dental field for more than 30 years. In addition to practicing clinical hygiene, she has also worked in dental office administration and treatment coordinating. Her career includes general dentistry and the specialty practices of periodontics, endodontics, pedodontics, and orthodontics. Cindy possesses both Registered Dental Assistant and Registered Dental Hygienist credentials and is licensed to practice in multiple states. She graduated from the University of South Dakota with a degree in dental hygiene.

Syllabus

A new section of each course starts monthly. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

Week 1

Wednesday - Lesson 01

In this first lesson, we’ll set up a dental office that will give us a chance to explore the types of dental careers and see how staff members work together. You'll take a tour of the office facilities, meet the members of the staff, and look at a sample daily schedule. Viewing a sample schedule gives you a chance to see what happens in both the administrative and clinical areas. You'll also find out what happens before the first patient arrives to ensure that the day runs smoothly. Your first lesson will give you a real insider's look at everything that goes on behind the scenes, and you'll soon be ready to jump into patient care.

Friday - Lesson 02

During your second lesson, you'll start learning how people in a dental office communicate using terminology that makes the job easier and improves accuracy. We’ll look at the importance of choosing a dentist who fits a patient's unique needs. Using dental terms, we'll begin exploring dental disease, as well as prevention methods that can help preserve smiles for a lifetime.

Week 2

Wednesday - Lesson 03

Today we'll focus on the mouth: You'll learn about gum disease, its symptoms, and its diagnosis. You'll also learn techniques to prevent the leading cause of tooth loss. Throughout the lesson, we’ll continue to build your dental vocabulary. We'll finish the lesson by exploring good brushing and flossing techniques that will keep your future patients smiling for years to come.

Friday - Lesson 04

In the first of our career-specific lessons, you'll see what it's like to be a dentist. We'll start by exploring what a dentist does and what a dentist's day is like. Then we’ll examine which characteristics make a good dentist, and we'll look at the benefits and challenges of dentistry. Think you’d like to be a dentist? You’ll find out the educational requirements to practice, and we'll introduce you to the variety of specialties from which to choose.

Week 3

Wednesday - Lesson 05

In Lesson 5, you'll walk a mile in the shoes of a dental hygienist. You’ll get a firsthand account of the benefits and challenges of practicing dental hygiene. Think you’d like to be a hygienist? We'll explore the educational requirements to work in the field and talk about the differences between a two-year and a four-year program.

Friday - Lesson 06

Today you'll learn about dental assistants and their contribution to the dental team. By following our dental assistants through their morning in the office, we’ll see what they do, both with patients and behind the scenes, to keep the office running efficiently. We’ll also look at the education you'll need to enter the profession as well as achieve certified status.

Week 4

Wednesday - Lesson 07

In Lesson 7, we'll examine the work of the dental lab technician. You’ll get a peek at the wide variety of projects the lab technician works to create, including both restorative and orthodontic appliances, and you'll see how the appliances affect patients. You’ll hear what the job is like from a dental lab technician, and you'll learn what education the career requires and what kind of certification is available.

Friday - Lesson 08

In this lesson, we'll focus on the business side of a dental practice. You'll meet the staff members who manage the financial security of the practice, and we’ll explore patient scheduling and patient privacy regulations. We'll take a look at a variety of tasks that the administrative staff handles to ensure the overall success of the practice.

Week 5

Wednesday - Lesson 09

During Lesson 9, you'll have a chance to create a patient record as we investigate how accurate communication is achieved in the dental office. We’ll review a patient health history, and you'll learn the basics of charting existing and necessary dental work in the mouth. Finally, we'll explore how computers are making practices more efficient.

Friday - Lesson 10

How can you make the best impression when you’re interviewing for a job in a dental office? What can you do to inspire confidence in patients even before they enter the treatment room? In this lesson, you’ll learn how to project a winning, professional image that will help you succeed in your new line of work. We’ll also explore the equipment, procedures, and practices that will keep you healthy and safe throughout a long, successful career.

Week 6

Wednesday - Lesson 11

Dentistry has come a long way in the past few decades. We'll do a quick history lesson to help you understand the changes in the industry since the mid-20th century, and we'll explore why dentistry offers some of the fastest-growing careers in health care. We’ll research the growth of each career in the dental office and discover which jobs offer the greatest opportunities over the next few years. Finally, we'll take a look at what kinds of people are pursuing dental careers and who will be most in demand in the coming years.

Friday - Lesson 12

In your final lesson, we'll look at new products and techniques in the dental world, some of which are already available in dental practices, and some that you might see in the future. Scientists and researchers are constantly learning more about how oral health affects overall health, and you'll find out what recent studies show. We'll also explore an emerging new dental career that aims to fill current gaps in care. Finally, you'll return to our dental office and see how the staff members we've been working with wrap up the day.

Requirements

Internet access, e-mail, the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and the Adobe Flash and PDF plug-ins (two free and simple downloads you obtain at http://www.adobe.com/downloads by clicking Get Adobe Flash Player and Get Adobe Reader).