Dental Hygienist

Company: Valley Healthcare System
Location: Columbus
Posted on: January 23, 2023

Job Description:

Description:
Summary: Responsible for providing hygiene treatment to patients Duties and Responsibilities: SPECIFIC DUTIES Patient Management

• Review daily schedule with the administrative assistant for hygiene patients
• Work with Front Desk 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
• Place medicaments sub gingival for periodontal disease treatment
• Take radiographs of patients as prescribed by dentist
• Apply cavity-preventive 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 HIPAA regulations
    • Accurately record medical and dental histories
    • Accurately file patient information
    • Assist in the administration of the recall system Office Participation
      • Be an active participant in team meetings
      • Promote team concept by interacting with others in the office Evaluation: The evaluation of work performance, including: specific duties, responsibilities, demeanor, and work ethic, will be ongoing and implemented by the Dr. Johnson per center policies.
        
        Requirements:
        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 Interpersonal
          • Good interpersonal skills to maintain effective rapport with patients, dentists and coworkers
          • Effective verbal skills to communicate with patients and staff Minimum Qualifications: High School Diploma, Registered Hygienist with the state. Compliance: Adhere to company policies and procedures and all Federal, State and Local medical service requirements. To include HIPAA Privacy & Security. Confidentiality (HIPAA): Every employee is required to sign a Pledge of Confidentiality. Failure to comply with our Pledge of Confidentiality can or will lead to immediate termination of employment. Confidentiality applies to a patient's Personal Health Information (PHI) and includes: written, oral and electronic communications. Each employee has an obligation to maintain confidentiality after their employment/association with this facility ends. Security (HIPAA): Every employee is required to protect their computer log-on and password. You must secure your work area prior to leaving it unattended for an extended period of time. You are required to log-off of your computer and secure your work area prior to leaving at the end of the day. If you have a responsibility for closing or locking files, securing equipment, or locking the building and you do not comply with these requirements, you will be subject to reprimand and/or termination based upon the infraction. We are required by law to protect patient privacy, identifiable patient information, and all properties containing such information. Physical Requirements: Varied activities include standing, walking, reaching, bending and lifting. Employee must possess full range of body motion including the ability to assist or lift patients when necessary; occasional weight bearing to exceed 50 pounds, use of portable stretchers/wheelchairs encouraged. Employee must possess hand-eye coordination with normal range of vision and hearing abilities. This position frequently requires working under stressful conditions and frequently requires irregular work hours. Environmental Working Conditions: This position includes both administrative and medical responsibilities. Employee is frequently exposed to communicable diseases, toxic substances, medical cleaning and processing solutions which my included ionizing radiation plus other elements common in a clinical environment. THIS POSITION IS AT RISK FOR OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE TO BLOOD AND/OR BODILY FLUIDS PI201461832

Keywords: Valley Healthcare System, Columbus , Dental Hygienist, Healthcare , Columbus, Georgia