The VA Central Ohio Healthcare System is recruiting for a Dental Hygienist in Dental Service at the Chalmers P. Wylie VA Ambulatory Care Center. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position Functional Statement: Dental Assistant / 91928-A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Basic Requirements: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy. Education: Associate Degree or higher in an accredited dental hygiene program. This program must be accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA). Licensure: Applicants must be currently licensed to practice as a dental hygienist with a full, current, and unrestricted license in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia. Certification - Public Law 97-35 requires that persons who administer Radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 CFR Part 75. Essentially, they must have successfully completed an educational program that meets or exceeds the standards described in that regulation and is accredited by an organization recognized by the Department of Education and be certified as radiographers in their field. English Language Proficiency. Must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by VA Regulations. Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Dental Hygienist, GS-09 (FPL): Experience: You must have one year of experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade of a GS-8 level in the Federal service to qualify for the GS-9. Experience equivalent to at least the GS-8 level in the Federal service may include but are not limited to: Patient medical assessment (e.g. medical/dental history, social history, vital signs, full periodontal assessment and charting), disease and treatment management recommendations, denture care, scaling and root planning, radiographs/image interpretation, patient education (e.g. post-procedure, tobacco cessation, caries and perio-disease prevention), behavior management, management of stable medically compromised patients (including risk factors), instrument sharpening, inter-service communication. Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate all of the following KSAs for the GS-9: Knowledge of hygiene procedures to explain the process and indication, complications and expected treatment outcomes for each. Ability to assess the impact of patient's medical and dental condition on maintaining oral health, recognize age-related changes in individual patients, adapt patient environment, and maximize patient's physical comfort. Ability to assess the patient's medical, dental, anxiety/phobias, medications and comorbidities to administer safe patient care. Skill in educating patients and caregivers on periodontal disease, wellness, health maintenance, oral hygiene practices, parafunctional habits, and effects of illness, addictions, medications and tobacco on the oral cavity. Skill in detecting plaque and calculus, dental abnormalities/pathologies, assessing inflammation and providing safe instrumentation for each procedure. Knowledge to select appropriate available fluoride products and indications/limitations for safe and proper application Knowledge of proper usage of dental radiography equipment, radiation safety, assessment of proper image capture and interpretation of films. Preferred Experience: At least 2 years of practice experience. The full performance level (FPL) of this vacancy is GS-9. References: VA Handbook 5005/73, Part II, Appendix G37, Dental Hygienist Qualification Standard. Physical Requirements: Work requires some physical exertion such as sitting, standing and bending for long periods of time. Exerting up to 50 pounds of force occasionally, or 25 pounds of force frequently to move objects is required. ["The Chalmers P. Wylie VA Ambulatory Care Center is a medical clinic which provides a full range of ambulatory health care services to eligible veterans. The Dental Hygienist duties include: Treating oral hygiene patients and advising and counseling such patients on proper oral health maintenance. Performing as a clinician and educational specialist providing therapeutic and preventive procedures on patients with a variety of conditions such as complicated medical histories, extreme apprehension, mental disorders and xerostomia. Referring patients to appropriate dentist for consultation or treatment as necessary. Setting up operatory for planned procedure and cleans dental unit for timely turnover strictly following clinical Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). Establishing work process(es) to support responses to all customer inquiries within 48-72 hours. Handling instruments safely, accurately, and efficiently. Provides routine oral prophylactic care to include application of fluoride solutions or varnish. Providing gross debridement, scaling and root planning procedures. Performing subgingival scaling, root planning after verifying a full charting and periodontal exam have been completed upon referral by staff dentist. Managing the dental recall system, ensuring continuity of care and proper referrals within the dental team. Serving as support both to staff periodontist in advanced cases and to implantologist in the maintenance of endosseous dental implants. Cleaning dental prostheses, fixed and removable Administering topical anesthetic agents. Preparing anesthetic syringe as needed for dentist. Administering local anesthetic, if licensed to provide local anesthetic. Removing sutures as needed. Accomplishing all procedures within standard infection control protocols. Providing patient education that is appropriate to the veteran's needs and oral condition. Providing individual and group oral health care instruction to patients and caregivers. Taking radiographic images that are characterized by diagnostic quality, accurately oriented and exposed correctly. Once the decision to obtain radiographs is made, they should attend to the ALARA (As low as reasonably achievable) principle and use best practices regarding exposure and patient shielding. Images are reviewed by the dentist and retakes are done as directed. Demonstrating proper infection control procedures in exposing images. Utilizing dental imaging safety techniques, and retakes are minimized. Preparing instruments properly for sterilization."]
About Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration
Providing Health Care for Veterans: The Veterans Health Administration is America’s largest integrated health care system, providing care at 1,255 health care facilities, including 170 medical centers and 1,074 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics), serving 9 million enrolled Veterans each year.
