Lead Dental Assistant

Job Description

Job Description

Lead Dental Assistant – Adult

Full-Time Position

Overview:
Chestnut Dental Associates is seeking a skilled and motivated Lead Dental Assistant to play a key role in supporting the success of our Adult Clinical team. This position offers an exciting opportunity for an experienced dental assistant who is passionate about patient care, teamwork, and clinical excellence to step into a leadership role within a dynamic and fast-paced practice.

The Lead Dental Assistant works closely with the Clinical Director to help guide the daily operations of the Adult clinical team while continuing to provide high-quality chairside assisting. In this role, you will serve as both a clinical expert and team leader , helping to ensure smooth patient flow, supporting the development and training of assistants, and fostering a collaborative environment focused on outstanding patient care.

At Chestnut Dental Associates, we are committed to delivering care with professionalism, compassion, and efficiency. The Lead Dental Assistant plays a critical role in maintaining these standards by supporting team members, strengthening communication across departments, and ensuring that our clinical operations run smoothly each day.

All responsibilities are performed in a manner consistent with the professional, caring philosophy of Chestnut Dental Associates.

Reports To : Clinical Director, Operations Manager

Physical Requirements The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
Must be able to withstand the stress and demands of an active position, including but not limited to standing for extended periods of time, walking, stooping, bending and sitting. Requires manual dexterity, good eye-hand coordination and adequate vision. The employee frequently is required to talk and hear; stand for long periods of time; walk; use hands to finger, handle or feel; and reach with hands and arms. The employee must frequently lift and/or move objects up to 25 pounds. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly exposed to blood and blood-borne pathogens and/or physical risks, which will require OSHA training.Job Specifications:

• Current FTDA or CA Dental Assisting License issued by the Board of Registration in Dentistry per Massachusetts law.
• Current Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) Certification (or will be required to obtain within or after 1 year of employment)
• Completion of required annual continuing dental education units
• Current Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Certification
• Current Hepatitis Vaccination as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Clinical Responsibilities :

• Provides clinical chairside dental assisting as scheduled. Must be flexible in his or her schedule to support the needs of both the department and the practice.
• Coordinates patient flow to ensure smooth daily functioning.

• Ensures thorough patient care in an atmosphere of cleanliness, timeliness and quality.

• Oversees maintenance of operatory, sterilization and laboratory areas.
• Ensures departmental compliance with CDA’s safety, OSHA and HIPAA programs in conjunction with program coordinators.
• Coordinates laboratory processes including study model inventory and laboratory account reconciliation.
• Assists with responsibilities of dental supply inventory, coordinating maintenance and repair of equipment as needed.

• Assists in maintaining Dental Assistant Manual as needed

Supervisory Responsibilities:

• In conjunction with the Clinical Director, directly supervises department dental and clinical assistants, with the direct support of the department dentists, with additional support from the Operations Manager.

• Responsible for the training of all new dental and clinical assistants in his or her department with planning and logistical support from the Clinical Director, Operations Manager and HR Specialist.
• Act as a primary resource to his or her dental and clinical assisting staff, providing ongoing training and support to maintain a high morale, and ensures all department-specific and practice-wide information is communicated weekly, or as required.
• Together with the HR Specialist, manages all department employment relations matters, and responsible for leading the annual performance review process for his or her department staff, with support from the appropriate doctors.

• Meets regularly with the Clinical Director, HR Specialist and Operations Manager to review staffing needs, policy and procedure updates, staff communication tools, to discuss the development of best practices and to ensure OSHA/HIPAA compliance requirements are met in conjunction with the Compliance Committee and its designees.
• Ensures all staff members maintain patient confidentiality.

• With support of the COO, Administrative Partner, Operations Manager and HR Specialist, participates in ongoing leadership training.

• Performs other related duties as assigned.
• Department dentists will be the regular and direct point of contact for support in managing through all daily operational and supervisory responsibilities as related to Patient Care.

Competencies:

• Demonstrates exceptional interpersonal skills and is proficient in written and oral communication.
• Maintains outgoing, friendly attitude with patients and staff, exhibiting professional and ethical behavior at all times.
• Ability to effectively manage time and multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment, as well as managing through schedule interruptions and changes.
• Supports doctor leadership team by maintaining a comprehensive knowledge of current dentistry practices, CDA policies and procedures and by staying current with industry trends.
• Works cooperatively with Doctors, Administrators, Directors, Leads, and colleagues, and is a leader and resource to all team members.
• Attends to operational needs in a timely, responsible manner, asks for assistance when needed and is capable of making sound decisions.
• Escalates employee matters as needed to Clinical Director.
• Regularly checks email and responds to company communications.

Chestnut Dental Associates is an Equal Opportunity Employer.