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Notices
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical
treatment may become necessary.
Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility.
With respect to any drug or pharmaceutical products identified, readers are advised to check the most current information provided (i) on procedures featured or (ii) by the manufacturer of each product to be administered, to verify the recommended dose or formula, the method and duration of administration, and contraindications. It is the responsibility of practitioners, relying on their own experience and knowledge of their patients, to make diagnoses, to determine dosages and the best treatment for each individual patient, and to take all appropriate safety precautions. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein.
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About the Authors
DEBBIE S. ROBINSON is currently a Research Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina, where she is involved in clinical research within the Gillings School of Global Public Health. Her educational background includes an associate degree in Dental Assisting from Broward Community College, a bachelor's degree in Health Administration from Florida Atlantic University, and a master's degree in Dental Auxiliary Teachers Education from the University of North Carolina. Her clinical experience includes practicing as a clinical chairside assistant for 7 years in a pediatric dental office, as well as in the dental research center and the special patient care clinic at the University of North Carolina (UNC) Dental School. With more than 20 years of teaching, Debbie has held teaching positions at community college settings in Florida and North Carolina. She has served as Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of the Dental Assisting Program and Dental Assisting Specialty Program at UNC School of Dentistry. She has presented continuing education for practicing dental assistants at local, state, and international meetings. She has served as a member of the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) test construction committee for two terms and has authored and coauthored journal articles for The Dental Assistant. Additional endeavors include consulting with community colleges and proprietary schools on the development of new dental assisting programs across the country.
DONI L. BIRD is the former Director of the Allied Dental Education Programs at Santa Rosa Junior College in Santa Rosa, California. She has taught dental assisting at City College of San Francisco, College of Marin, and the University of New Mexico.
Before becoming a dental assisting educator, she practiced as a dental assistant in private practice and as a supervisor of the Dental Clinic at Mount Zion Hospital and Medical Center in San Francisco. Doni holds a bachelor's degree in Education and a master's degree in Education from San Francisco State University and a degree in dental hygiene from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. She has served as a member and Chairman of the board of directors of the Organization for Safety, Asepsis, and Prevention (OSAP). She is a member of the American Dental Assistants Association (ADAA) and has served as President of the Northern California Dental Assistants Association and as a board member and Chairman of the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). She served as a consultant to the Registered Dental Assisting Test Construction Committee in California and on the board of directors of the California Association of Dental Assisting Teachers (CADAT). She has also served as a consultant in dental assisting education to the Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) of the American Dental Association (ADA). Additional endeavors include consulting with private dental practices, community colleges, and proprietary schools on the development of new dental assisting programs across the country.
Preface
Welcome to the sixth edition of Essentials of Dental Assisting. Our goal for this edition was to design a textbook along with ancillaries that meet the needs of specific groups in the population of dental assisting professionals, that is, individuals who are gaining general background knowledge and skills, those who are in entry-level positions in a clinical setting, and those on-the-job–trained dental assistants who are preparing to take the Dental Assisting National Board certification examinations.
Many of the chapters in this edition have been revised and enhanced to include the most up-to-date knowledge and skills that are being taught in dentistry and practiced in clinical settings. The book is divided into 10 parts, beginning with historical information, legal and ethical issues, and scientific background, leading into preclinical and clinical areas, and finishing with preparation for employment and national board examinations. Each chapter provides specific objectives for the reader to achieve, terms for the reader to review to ensure comprehension of the content, specific figures and tables that are designed to assist the reader in grasping the material, and, finally, procedures that provide detail and exercises designed to test comprehension.
The role of the dental assistant in today's dental practice requires an individual who is well informed and skilled from the very basic level of patient care and continuing to the performance of advanced intraoral procedures. To be an efficient and competent member of the dental team, the clinical assistant of today must have critical-thinking abilities when solving problems, as well as knowledge and understanding when making legal and ethical decisions.
A career as a dental assistant can be challenging and rewarding. Becoming a well-educated and clinically competent dental assistant will require dedication, determination, and desire. This may sound like quite a challenge, but you can do it!
The Learning Package
The sixth edition of Essentials of Dental Assisting is designed as a comprehensive learning package.
The student package includes:
• Textbook
• Evolve Resources
• Student Workbook (sold separately)
The faculty package includes all student resources plus:
• Test bank
• TEACH Instructor Resources
Textbook
Specific updated guidelines and recommendations are integrated into this edition, which provides:
• Comprehensive coverage that spans the entire dental assisting curriculum
• Cutting-edge content in an approachable writing style
• Expert authorship
• Top-notch artwork
• Step-by-step procedures for basic and expanded functions identified by icons
• The most recent CDC Guidelines for Infection Control in Dentistry to promote adherence to the most advanced infection control procedures for patients and dental professionals
• Intraoral, panoramic, and digital radiographic techniques used in
dentistry today
• Standards that apply to performing CPR
• HIPAA requirements that address patient confidentiality as ensured by the health care system
• Nutritional guidelines as determined by the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Academy of Sciences
• Anesthesia color coding system designed by the American Dental Association Council on Scientific Affairs
• Excellent clinical photographs
The following tools guide the reader:
• Key Terms are introduced throughout the chapter. Each chapter features two different types of highlighted terms: terms that appear in bold and blue and terms that appear in bold and black. The terms appearing in bold and blue are key terms and appear in the Key Terms list at the beginning of each chapter. The terms that appear in bold and black are important to the material being discussed in the chapter (and are therefore emphasized) but were first introduced in an earlier chapter. All terms are also included in a comprehensive Glossary at the back of the book, which provides chapter crossreferences. The definitions reinforce these new terms.
• Learning Objectives are introduced at the beginning of each chapter so that readers will know what is expected of them at both the theoretical and the performance levels.
• Ethical Implications boxes will help readers focus on ethical and legal behaviors that they must know to protect themselves, dental patients, and dental practices.
• Multiple-Choice Questions are found at the end of each chapter for readers to use to test their immediate knowledge. Answers are available to instructors in the Instructor's Resource Manual on the Evolve Web site.
• Apply Your Knowledge allows readers to analyze and initiate discussions in the classroom setting or with the dental team.
• Procedures are presented in a step-by-step sequence with
illustrations, lists of equipment and supplies that the dental assistant will need, and the rationale behind each step. Procedural icons are included to remind the reader of the preparation and precautions that are needed. Examples of how the procedure might be entered in the patient's chart are provided at the end of many procedures. It should be noted that there may be more than one way to perform a procedure correctly. Some dental assistants may perform a procedure one way, whereas others may choose to perform the same procedure using a slightly different technique. We have chosen to feature the methods used by most dental assisting programs.
Evolve Resources
Elsevier has created a Web site to support this learning package at http://evolve.elsevier.com/Robinson/essentials/. This Evolve site includes both student and instructor resources.
Student Resources
• Chapter quizzes in instant-feedback format
• Competency skill sheets for all procedures in the text
• Multiple-choice practice examination (250 questions)
• Content updates
• Procedural videos (more information follows)
Videos
Visual presentation is vital for learning clinical skills. The student Evolve Resources provide 65 video clips of specific skills that the dental assistant may perform in the clinical setting; they are organized into the following categories:
• Oral Health and Prevention of Disease
• Infection Prevention in Dentistry
• Occupational Health and Safety
• Patient Information and Assessment
• Clinical Dentistry
• Dental Imaging
• Dental Materials
• Comprehensive Dental Care
Emphasis in these videos is placed on the expanded functions delegated to the credentialed dental assistant. Again, it should be noted that there may be more than one way to perform any technique correctly. We have chosen to feature the techniques used by most dental assisting programs.
The videos also feature:
• Interactive review questions at the end of each skill
• Optional English and Spanish closed-captioning
• Animations that showcase common medical emergency conditions
• The collection in a downloadable format
• Scripts in English and Spanish
Instructor Resources
• Access to all student resources
• Image collection
• Instructor-specific content updates
• Test bank with 1,000 questions and answers, rationales for all choices, page number references for remediation, cognitive level, Certified Dental Assistant (CDA) examination blueprint category, and chapter objectives to which the question maps, available in ExamView.
• TEACH Instructor Resources (more information follows)
TEACH Instructor Resources
TEACH for Essentials of Dental Assisting is an all-in-one resource designed to save educators time and take the guesswork out of
classroom planning and preparation. TEACH includes detailed lesson plans with chapter teaching focus, pretests, background assessments, and related class discussions and activities, all designed to fit into 50minute classroom increments to ease the work involved in classroom preparation. These lesson plans are centered on mapping textbook and ancillary content (by page number) to specific chapter learning and performance outcomes. Answers to the chapter exercises and the student workbook questions and exercises are also available with TEACH. In addition, lecture outlines provide detailed PowerPoint presentations with teaching notes or talking points as a ready-to-use classroom resource for educators.
Note: If you are unable to access TEACH on the Evolve Web site, contact your Elsevier Education Solutions Consultant.
Student Workbook
The student workbook is a supplement to the learning process. The workbook includes review exercises for all chapters, competency skills sheets for all procedures in the textbook, and 42 flashcards as a bonus study aid.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to recognize and thank many people whose contributions were instrumental in the completion of this project.
Thank you to our publishing family at Elsevier: Kristin Wilhelm, Senior Content Strategist; Kelly Skelton, Content Development Specialist; Julie Eddy, Publishing Services Manager; Mike Sheets, Project Manager; Traci Cahill, Marketing Manager; and Renee Duenow, Designer. In addition, a huge thank you to the sales associates nationwide who really do the legwork to get “EDA” to instructors and programs. We truly appreciate everyone's support, advice, contributions, and collaboration in creating such a comprehensive learning package.
We sincerely appreciate and thank the reviewers who took the time to evaluate our work carefully and to provide constructive suggestions and recommendations.
Finally, a special thank you to our family, friends, and colleagues for their ongoing patience, adjustments to their schedules, and support that go hand in hand with working in the publishing world.
Debbie and Doni
How to Use Essentials of Dental Assisting
Icon Key
The procedure should be documented in the patient record.
In some states, the procedure is considered an expanded function if it is delegated to the dental assistant. Always review the regulations in the Dental Practice Act of your state.
The procedure involves contact with materials that are considered hazardous. Review the safety data sheet (SDS) on this procedure. Special handling, labeling, or disposal techniques may be required.
The student should be able to identify the instruments required for the stated procedure and to recognize their use.
The procedure is sensitive to moisture contamination. Special precautions such as cotton roll placement, oral evacuation, and the use of a dental dam must be applied to avoid moisture in the oral cavity.
The procedure involves exposure to potentially infectious materials and requires the use of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), such as protective clothing, mask, eyewear, and gloves.
The procedure is featured in a video on the Evolve Resources Web site.
PART ONE
The
Profession
OUTLINE
Chapter 1 Introduction to Dental Assisting
Chapter 2 Professional and Legal Aspects of Dental Assisting
CHAPTER 1 Introduction to Dental Assisting
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Pronounce, define, and spell the key terms.
2. Describe the highlights in the history of dental assisting and dentistry, including but not limited to the following:
• Name the individual who discovered x-rays.
• Name the first dentist to employ a dental assistant.
• Name the first African American to receive the Doctor of Medical Dentistry degree from Harvard University.
• Name the first African-American woman to receive a dental degree in the United States.
• Name the first Native American Indian to receive a dental degree in the United States.
• Name the first Native-American Indian woman to receive a dental degree in the United States.
3. Complete the following related to the members of the healthcare team:
• Name each member of the dental team, and explain the role of each.
• List and describe each of the specialties of dentistry.
• Describe the various roles of the dental assistant.
4. Identify and describe the areas of a dental office.
KEY TERMS
C. Edmund Kells
certified dental technician (CDT)
Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) of the American Dental Association (ADA)
dental assistant
dental health care team
dental laboratory technician
dental public health
dental specialties
dentist
Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)
Doctor of Medical Dentistry (DMD)
endodontics
expanded-functions dental assistant (EFDA)
George Blue Spruce, Jr.
Ida Gray-Rollins
Jessica A. Rickert
oral and maxillofacial radiology
oral and maxillofacial surgery
oral pathology
orthodontics
pediatric dentistry
prosthodontics
radiographs
registered dental hygienist (RDH)
Robert Tanner Freeman
Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen
Dental assistants are important members of the dental health care team. A dental assistant career is exciting, challenging, and very rewarding. Many opportunities are available for young people who
