Dental Assisting Program Orange County . Los Angeles . Riverside

Dental Assisting Course Overview

The dental assisting program at the California Dental Institute has been designed to keep the students up to date with modern, and traditional clinical practices as well as the latest technology – enabling them to transition quickly from the classroom to the clinical environment.

Our program provides students with knowledge and skill sets that help them excel in the dental industry – while reducing their valuable time between completion and employment. California Dental Institute takes pride in being the only accelerated program in Orange County approved by the Bureau for Private and Post-Secondary Education (BPPE).

Below are the other courses that our students need to take to complete our CA BPPE approved Dental Assistant program.

Dental Radiography ( Board Approved )

The State of California requires dental assistants to complete a Board-approved Radiation Safety course before operating dental x-ray equipment and performing radiographic procedures. Our Radiation Safety course fulfills the requirements of the California dental board. Our students are trained in traditional film processing as well as training with modern high-tech x-rays such as the KaVo NOMAD Pro 2 handheld X-Ray.

The 32-Hour Radiation Safety Program Comprises Of The Following:

• 8 hours of classroom instruction
• 12 hours of laboratory instruction
• 12 hours of hands-on training

8-Hour Infection Control Course ( Board Approved )

This 8-hour long program equips the students with the skills needed to ensure safe infection control practices in the clinical environment. This course is compulsory for all unlicensed dental assistants who are hired after January 1, 2010.

This Course Is Divided Into Three Sections:

• Classroom learning – 4 hours
• Preclinical/laboratory training – 2 hours
• Hands-on, clinical training – 2 hours.

Didactic learning is imparted in a comfortable, purpose-built dental operatory and classroom, followed by preclinical and clinical training in the dental setting. Students are taught about aseptic techniques, infection control, clinical waste disposal, and infection control during hands-on activity according to the State and Federal guidelines of the State Dental and Federal regulatory boards.

This Course Also Encompasses The Following Aspects:

• Proper use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
• Dental instrument sterilization
• Categories and disposal of clinical waste

OSHA And HIPAA Training

Our DA course is designed to cover OSHA guidelines that are required of all dental office employees.

• Record management
• Exposure management – blood and bodily fluids
• Infection control and clean-up in the dental operatory
• Ensuring infection control during clinical treatment
• Cross-infection prevention through disinfection, sterilization, sanitation, and the use of barriers such as rubber dams.