This position is located in the Specialty & Diagnostics (S&D) Service at VA Northern Arizona Health Care System - Bob Stump VA Medical Center in Prescott, AZ. The Dental Laboratory Technician performs work of considerable difficulty, provides and fabricates specialized complex dental or intra-oral maxillofacial appliances often collaborating with an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon and Prosthodontist. Minimum Requirement: The following are minimum requirements for appointment as a Dental Laboratory Technician in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). One of the following minimum requirement criteria must be met to be qualified for this position. Specialized Experience (GS-08): You must have one (1) year of specialized experience that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (i.e., GS-07). Specialized experience for this position and grade include: Use of dental laboratory material such as impression materials, plasters, stones, hydrocolloids, waxes, metals, acrylics, porcelain, and similar materials; Use of laboratory equipment such as hand tools, dental lathes, engines, and hand pieces, furnaces, casting machines, presses, flasks, and related equipment; Use of precision instruments such as articulators, surveyors, and microanalyzers; and Construction of dental prosthetic appliances. At this grade level (GS-08), qualifying specialized experience also includes: independently performing the full range of functions required to construct fixed or removable partial dentures, or complete dentures for cases that do not involve acute abnormalities of the mouth; applying a thorough knowledge of the variations in tooth form and the anatomy and function of the normal mouth to interpret the dentist's prescription, design partial dentures, and set teeth for full or partial dentures; applying thorough knowledge of dental laboratory materials, and skill in their use; using laboratory tools and equipment such as dental laboratory drills and lathes and surveying instruments, with skill and precision. (CLEAR DETAILS OF EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: Your resume must show complete information for each job entry, such as beginning and ending dates of employment, duties performed, and/or total hours worked per week.) OR, Education (GS-08): Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successful completion of one and a half years of graduate education that is directly related to the work of the position (Dental Laboratory Technician). Such graduate education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Licensed professional dentists will be considered qualified for any grade level if they have, in the aggregate, the required experience in dental laboratory procedures. Note: One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. (UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED: If you do not submit your transcript, your application may not be reviewed.) OR, Combination (GS-08): Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education, as described above. If education is used to meet specialized experience requirements, then such education must include courses directly related to the work of the position. (UNOFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT AND/OR CLEAR DETAILS OF EXPERIENCE REQUIRED: If you do not submit the required document, your application will not be reviewed. You will be rated on the following Competencies as part of the assessment questionnaire for this position: Critical Thinking Medicine and Dentistry Technical Competence IMPORTANT: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. All experience listed on your resume must include the month and year start/end dates. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such 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; religious; 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. Physical Requirements: Long periods of standing, sitting and bending are required. It is necessary to climb onto counters in order to replenish plaster bins. The ability to lift plaster boxes weighing 30 pounds from the floor to the counter to the plaster bins is required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. ["This announcement has been extended until September 14, 2023. If you have already applied, you do not need to reapply. You may, however, update your application materials during this time. ***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION*** The Dental Laboratory Technician functions as the lead technician for the dental laboratory, provides education, training and instruction to other dental assistants within the service line. The incumbent coordinates any fee-basis outsourcing and QA all prosthesis received from the VA Central Dental Laboratory; takes responsibility for any projects, problems, questions related to fabrication, delivery and insertion of intra-oral maxillofacial prosthesis; and provides specialized Dental Laboratory management, oversight and coordination in support of Dental Services, Specialty and Diagnostics Service line throughout Central and Northern Arizona. Major duties and responsibilities include but not limited to: Collaborating with a Fellowship trained Prosthodontist, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon and General Dentists to design and fabricate complex dental or intra-oral maxillofacial appliances Working with these specialists in developing the design of the appliance; fabricating, or overseeing the fabrication of the appliance; and resolving problems in its fabrication Utilizing a very thorough knowledge of oral anatomy, tooth morphology and dentition; a thorough knowledge of laboratory materials, tools, and equipment; and a very high degree of skill in their use Involving in complex removable and fixed oral-maxillofacial appliance including, fixed, semi-fixed, or removable implant cases, partial and complete dentures when the severe nature of the dental abnormalities Resolving particularly difficult problems of retention, balance, reducing tension on natural teeth and tissue, and similar problems Constructing routine full and partial dentures, dental splints and obturators, model work for fixed prostheses and other laboratory products to support the treatment needs of staff dentists Pouring primary and final impressions; fabricating custom trays; fabricating bite rims; mounting casts on articulators; setting teeth for trial dentures/partials; investing, packing, processing and finishing dentures/pmiials; polishing prosthesis following adjustment; fabricating night guards; fabricating provisional prostheses; repairing broken prostheses; adding teeth to prostheses; fabricating fluoride trays; fabricating stints; fabricating transitional partials, managing implant fabrication process, fabricating wrought wire clasps Performing quality assurance and inspections on prostheses fabricated by outside laboratories, including prescription compliance Providing education, training and instruction to other clinic personnel Responsible for the daily operation and throughput of dental products with the dental laboratory Work Schedule: Monday to Friday; 07:00 a.m. to 03:30 p.m. Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required"]
The Veterans Health Administration is America’s largest integrated health care system, providing care at 1,298 health care facilities, including 171 medical centers and 1,113 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics), serving 9 million enrolled Veterans each year.
