Have you considered pursuing an exciting, rewarding career in healthcare? As a trusted advisor in the Jacksonville education community, I want to tell you about the immense opportunities for dental assistants here. Dental assisting offers tremendous variety, excellent job prospects, and long-term potential to advance in oral healthcare.
What Exactly Do Dental Assistants Do?
Dental assistants perform a wide range of duties – they are the main support for dentists across clinical and administrative functions. In a typical day assisting a dentist, you may:
- Prepare the exam room with instruments and equipment
- Assist during procedures like fillings or extractions
- Take dental x-rays and intraoral camera images
- Make casts of patients‘ teeth for models and appliances
- Manage patient records in digital systems
- Schedule appointments and process billing
It‘s a career that allows you to balance patient interaction with technical tasks. Assistants get to know patients personally while helping manage their oral health over time. And you play an integral role in dental offices and clinics, coordinating key functions.
Why Jacksonville Needs More Well-Trained Assistants
With a population approaching one million in the city proper, Jacksonville healthcare needs continue growing rapidly. And dental care demand is surging right alongside.
Jacksonville employs over 2,100 dental assistants currently. And we project 300 new openings annually due to industry growth and retirements. That‘s exponential expansion!
Dental practices throughout Northeast Florida face shortages of trained assistants. And post-pandemic patient backlogs only compound that need. We simply need more qualified assistants to provide access to quality care.
Bureau of Labor Statistics data forecasts 10% national job growth for dental assistants over the next decade. That‘s over 40,000 additional jobs annually. Jacksonville growth could outpace national averages given demographic shifts. What does this mean for you? Exceptional job stability and abundant opportunities to launch your career.
Which Programs Offer Top-Notch Training?
Plenty of options exist locally to gain the education and hands-on training required for certification. Here are the credentials of five excellent schools:
| Program | Format | Length | Cost | Certification Included? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fortis College | Campus | 9 months | $18K | Radiography, CPR |
| Florida Institute of Dental Assisting | Campus/Online | 8 weeks | $4K | Radiography |
| Academy for Dental Assistants | Campus | 10 months | $15K | CPR, Radiography |
| Aspen Dental Assistant Training | Online | 9 months | $3K | Registered Dental Assistant |
| Jacksonville Dental Assistant School | Campus | 4 months | $7K | Basic Life Support |
The right program for you depends on your schedule, budget, and specific career ambitions. All accredited programs meet educational requirements for licensure and credentialing exams.
And these schools focus strongly on hands-on labs and live clinics. You‘ll train side-by-side with licensed dentists, building real-world experience that proves invaluable when starting your career.
What Will You Learn in Detail?
While each program sets its own curriculum, expect coursework spanning:
Clinical Care & Procedures: Performing specialty dentistry assistive tasks around cosmetic, pediatric, orthodontic and restorative treatment
Patient Management: Interpersonal communication, education on postoperative care, assistance handling needs of elderly, pediatric, special needs and anxious patients
Imaging: Intraoral camera usage, panoramic x-rays, developing film
Dental Laboratory: Model casting, crown/bridge fabrication, bleaching and esthetic restoration
Emergency Response: CPR, infection control, incident documentation
Office Administration: Insurance paperwork processing, patient scheduling, records management
Technology: Computer skills for dental practice management software – Dentrix, Easy Dental, Open Dental
Licensure & Ethics: Qualification requirements, ethical codes of professional conduct
Programs provide the 300+ hours of coursework and training needed to apply for licenses and take credentialing exams. But education continues even once working – through specializations and continuing education.
What Opportunities Exist for New Assistants?
The Jacksonville metropolitan region has over 1,000 private practice dentists offering family, cosmetic, restorative and specialty care. And the major hospital networks – Baptist Health, Ascension St. Vincent‘s and UF Health Jacksonville – need assistants to support oral surgery and dental clinics.
This sheer volume means you can enter the exact practice type or patient demographic you desire – pediatric offices, orthodontic centers, clinics serving the elderly or underprivileged.
The average full-time dental assistant salary reaches $38,000 here in Jacksonville (Salary.com). Those certified in dental radiology, lab techniques and advanced functions earn 10-15% higher wages.
Many graduates start as dental assistants and then progress into office or clinic management roles. Some leverage the patient experience gained to transition into higher paying positions like pharmaceutical medical sales representatives.
Insider Tips to Prepare for an Assistant Career
As you look at dental assistant programs and career options, here is my best advice as an industry expert:
Seek exposure first – Spend a day shadowing in dental offices to understand the work before applying to schools
Develop precision – Practice fine motor skills using tools and hand models in preparation for labs
Verify program reputation & placement rates – Check reviews and ask about the hiring partnerships each school maintains
Connect with professors – Getting to know instructors can help enormously navigating school and job searches
Apply early – Petition to enroll the moment you decide this career excites you to save spots in competitive programs!
I‘m enthusiastic about all the possibilities dental assisting promises in the Jacksonville region. With compassion for patients, attention to detail and willingness to learn – you are bound to find rewarding opportunities building healthier smiles.
Let me know if any other questions arise! I‘m always glad to offer insider guidance around launching your dental assisting career.