Dental Assistant: Why I Want To Be A Dental Assistant 

Growing up in life, I have always wanted to become many things such as a Teacher, Veterinarian, Nurse, and so forth. Never would’ve thought to see myself in college to study and practice becoming a Dental Assistant after the birth of my daughter. I feel so confident that this career path and new experience is a great fit for me because I love teeth. The obsession and passion I have for teeth is outrageous. To be the person patients come to, to get their teeth clean and fixed, to want to smile and be happy, and to build their inner and outer confidence, would make me feel I did something special and feel that I have achieved something.

Education, Certifications, and Training: The education, Certifications, and Training you'll need to become a Dental Assistant is a high school diploma or equivalent, graduated from an accredited program, pass an exam, and a minimum of 3500 hours of approved work experience. This takes approximately a year to complete. For those who do not have the education above, can learn their job tasks hands on with the Dentist at the sites. You'll learn Dental Terminology, how to interact with your patients, the names of the instruments and so much other stuff pertaining to this job.

Skills: The skills requires interpersonal and technical skills, meaning interacting with your patients properly and knowledge to perform the tasks. You have to approach your patient a certain way and basically know what your talking about before you talk. Other skills that this job requires are the following:

• Being the Dentist assistant during the treatment procedures; 
• Taking x-rays of the teeth; 
• Taking vital signs and asking patients about their medical history 
• Sterilizing and preparing equipment and supplies; 
•  Answering the phones and setting appointments; 
• Providing proper instructions for oral care;  
• Following up with patients before and after appointment.

Basically these skills are very important for this career. They will be highly expected of you and you will need to be experienced of them. There's no room for error of mistakes because this could cause you a lawsuit and look bad on you in your future if you don't complete the following skills correctly.

These advantages could come in handy for you when you get further in the field. Most dentist offices go by business hours, which means you will have the weekends off to spend time with your family and do other things like running errands. You will be working a regular schedule everyday. Flexibility for full time and part time are available to you cause dentist are in high demand. Personal satisfaction, allowing yourself to feel you've done something helpful by providing them with great oral health care service.

“Challenge your limits, never miss an opportunity.” Austin Theodorus. This career profession has great opportunities such as: solo/group dental practices, removing wisdom teeth, helping dentist treat patients that stay in bed for long periods of time due to sickness, and insurance coverage. You may also find yourself teaching others in vocational schools and community colleges.