Program Spotlight: Dental Assisting

July 8, 2020 | COLLEGE NEWS

For anyone who would like to brighten people's smiles for a living, PTC offers its Dental Assisting program, an excellent starting point for a career in dental health.

The program's instructor Dawn Garcia explained that students can work at their own pace, which takes 14-16 months to complete. It covers many valuable skills in the profession, including basic dental health care and safety procedures, infection control, proper use of dental instruments, and functions of pharmacology and anesthesia. Students are also taught computer literacy, interpersonal skills, and general responsibilities of a dental health care worker.

A 1993 graduate of the course herself, Garcia worked in the field for 18 years before returning to PTC to become the program's instructor. She called the course very "hands-on intensive," explaining that since it is accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA), students can work on live patients.

"That sets us apart from other programs," she noted.

There is a 100 percent graduation rate, and the college helps students with job placement assistance when they have gone through the program. Dental offices often seek PTC graduates, Garcia said, namely because they know the students have received hands-on training at the college.

In addition to providing the opportunity for students of all ages to learn a valuable skill, the program also does its part to give back to the community.

"We're partners with the St. Petersburg Free Clinic," she said, "and they have dental days that provide services to the community, and our assistants volunteer for that. We also provide very low-cost dental care to our own clinic that we have on campus. We have dentists that come in and volunteer, and people can get treatment for next to nothing."

Students need a high school diploma or GED to get into the course. Information for additional requirements such as necessary immunizations, drug screenings, and background checks are available at the college's Student Services office. Distance learning is available as well, and if necessary, students can take the first introductory portion of the program online.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, classes have had to adjust, and procedures have been put on hold, but the program is finding ways to keep the students engaged.

"Students usually do required assignments and text reading, and then they'll take a written test," Garcia said. "Then they actually go in a clinic, and we do that particular procedure together. So now, we're looking into purchasing a virtual simulator program to get us hopefully through the summer term. But right now, students are really just taking tests with me every Thursday and Friday, getting the written parts done."

Garcia noted that graduates could expect to earn between $15-21 per hour upon entering the workforce, and the certification students receive gives them the chance to work where they choose.

"The good thing is the certification at the end is a national certification," she said, "so that can go anywhere in the nation."