Dental Office Assistant
180 hours
Description
The job of the dental office assistant encompasses all of the business aspects
related to running a dental practice. Some of the duties of the dental office
assistant may include scheduling and confirming appointments, greeting patients,
managing patient files, sending bills, receiving payments, and ordering office
supplies and dental materials. With on-the-job training, the dental office
assistant may also assist in chair side duties
such as preparing patients for treatment, obtaining dental records, sterilizing
instruments,
and preparing trays of instruments for dental procedures.
While the majority of dental office assistants work in dental offices, including solo and group practices, others will find employment in managed care facilities and specialty practices working for periodontists, orthodontists, or oral surgeons. With additional education and training, dental office assistants can move into positions such as office managers, dental-assisting instructors, or dental product sales representatives. Some dental assistants seek certification through the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB). Graduates of Protrain Dental Office Assistant program are eligible for this exam after working full-time for two years or part-time for four years as a dental assistant and obtaining certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
The program provides the dental office assistant-related knowledge you will need to gain an entry-level position in the dental field. You will learn the key concepts of running a successful dental office administration. You will gain hands-on practice in completing routine office duties and the end of the program will prepare you for a successful
Your tuition fee includes:
* All instruction, exam evaluation, and grading of homework assignments
* Access to our state-of-the-art Online Student Center
* Full student services and support during your program, including
unlimited e-mail, fax, and telephone support
* All new, latest edition, textbooks
* Comprehensive and up-to-date study guides prepared by
faculty and reviewed by subject matter experts
* Exam grade reports with references for questions answered incorrectly
* One official school transcript
* A Certificate of completion of program requirements
* 18 month access
The comprehensive Dental Office Assistant online course curriculum covers a broad range of topics. Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Gives an overview of HIPPA regulations for medical
office personnel. Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Job 1: Records Management - Organizing Work Files Job 2: Written Communication - Revising Patient
Information Sheet Job 3: Records Management - Preparing New Patient
Files Job 4: Computerized Scheduling - Blocking and
Scheduling Patient Appointments Job 5: Appointments - Scheduling Telephone
Appointments Job 6: Completion of Encounter Form Job 7: Transcription - SOAP Notes Job 8: Transcription - SOAP Notes and EEG Job 9: Appointments - Creating Appointment Patient
List Job 10: Appointments - Preparing New Patient
Appointments Schedule, Drafting Letter to Patients to
Inform of New Doctors' Hours Job 11: Transcription - History and Physical
Examination Record, Continuation Sheet Job 12: Research and Written Communication Skills -
Researching Drug Information Job 13: Computerized Medical Insurance Billing -
Preparing CMS-1500 Insurance Reimbursement Form Job 14: Insurance Claims - Preparing CMS-1500 Forms:
Medical and Blue Job 15: Research and Written Communication Skills -
Creating a Travel Itinerary Job 16: Transcription - Preparing Preoperative
History and Physical Examination Report and Operative
Report Job 17: Written Communication - Completing Finished
Copy from Rough Draft Job 18: Communication Skills - Making a Referral to a
Specialist Job 19: Administrative Procedures - Faxing a Referral
Job 20: Transcription - Two History and Physical
Examination Records Job 21: Transcription -Two Operative Reports Job 22: Scheduling - Appointment Requests Job 23: Computerized Medical Records Management -
Input New Patient Records, Edit Patient Records, Prepare
Reports Job 24: Records Management - Transcribing Emergency
Patient Office Visit, Creating New Patient File,
Completing Encounter Form Job 25: Employee Payroll - Completing Work Record,
Preparing and Proving Totals on Payroll Register Job 26: Transcription - History and Physical
Examination Record, Progress Notes, Letter Job 27: Transcription - Operative Reports Job 28: Transcription - Telephone Messages Job 29: Research - Researching Electronic Medical
Records Job 30: Computerized Procedure Entry Job 31: Insurance Claims and Managed Care - Preparing
CMS-1500 Forms: Medicare and Blue Job 32: Standard Precautions: Preparing Occupational
Exposure Incident Report Job 33: Communications: Proofreading and Preparing
Final Copies from Draft Copies: Discharge Summary and
History and Physical Examination Record Job 34: Office Administration - Ordering Office
Supplies and Preparing a Purchase Order Job 35: Coding - Diagnostic and Procedural Coding Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3Curriculum
Unit I: Skills for Success
Covers learning styles; instrinsic versus extrinsic
motivation; self-efficacy and self-determination;
visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners; and field
dependence versus field independence.
Covers study skills, including choosing a place to
study; scheduling time, goal setting; monitoring your
study sessions; and avoiding procrastination.
Covers learning strategies, including SQ3R;
note-taking skills; memory tricks; references; and how
to take multiple choice tests. Unit II: Dental Office Management 1
Covers the dental team; discusses practice management
and the practice mission statement; covers the
qualifications and credentials of the dental assistant,
certification, and continuing education.
Covers the legal and ethical issues and
responsibilities of the office assistant; discusses
dental jurisprudence and ethics, the state board of
dental examiners, and the code of ethics; stresses the
importance of an office manual.
Covers hazard communication and regulatory agency
mandate; discusses the importance of complying with
local, state, and federal regulations.
Covers patient relations; explains how to assist
patients with necessary forms and introduce a new
patient to other team members; discusses nonverbal
communication.Unit III: Dental Office Management II
Covers marketing the practice and the key elements of
dental marketing; discusses goal setting and achieving
patient satisfaction.
Covers printed communications used in the dental
office, including stationery, business cards, business
letters, and cards as practice builders.
Covers business office equipment, including
telephones, fax machines, photocopiers, and computers;
discusses how to set up a conference call. Unit IV: English Usage and Written Communication
Covers the parts of speech, including nouns, verbs,
pronouns, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions,
conjunctions, and interjections.
Covers the parts of a sentence, including the
subject, predicate, direct and indirect objects, subject
complements, phrases, and clauses.
Covers pronoun/antecedent agreement and pronoun
usage; explains how pronouns are used in sentences;
covers subject/verb agreement.
Covers sentence types and sentence punctuation.
Covers fundamentals of written communication
including using active versus passive voice, writing
unified and coherent paragraphs, and writing topic
sentences for paragraphs. Discusses common types of
business communication including business letters and
memorandums. Unit V: Dental Office Management III
Covers dental nomenclature and related terminology;
discusses dental arches, quadrants and sextants, tooth
composition, types and functions of teeth, tooth
identification, tooth surfaces and edges, and cavity
classifications.
Covers charting the oral cavity; discusses completing
the dental chart; tooth numbering systems, charting
symbols and abbreviations, office systems and color
charting, and charting terms and symbols; also covers
the American Dental Association (ADA) coding system.
Covers patient records, diagnosis and treatment
planning; discusses filing systems, types of patient
records, and ownership of patient records; also
discusses diagnosis, treatment planning and case
prevention, radiation safety and pharmaceutical
prescriptions. Unit VI: Introduction to Computers, Keyboarding and
Office Technology
Covers how computers are used in the office today,
the different types of computers, and the parts of a
computer system.
Covers basic keyboarding skills using the Mavis
Beacon Teaches Typing CD.
Covers the Internet, the World Wide Web (WWW), URLs,
the different types of Internet connections, search
engines, email, and other uses for the Internet.
Covers other types of office technology, including
office telephones and the different types of telephone
calls; fax machines; photocopiers; multipurpose
machines; transcribers; digital cameras; and wireless
communication.Unit VII: Dental Office Management IV
Covers scheduling patient appointments to optimize
practice efficiency; explains how to schedule for the
dentist's preference and how to schedule dental
emergency patients and late patients.
Covers managing accounts receivable; discusses
managed care programs, insurance and third-party claims,
ADA insurance codes, methods of payments, and collecting
past-due accounts.
Covers managing accounts payable; discusses
understanding overhead, the office checking account, a
bank statement, electronic funds and transfer systems;
also covers payroll records and reporting procedures.
Covers supply ordering and inventory control;
discusses the types of supplies used in a dental office
and how to manage these supplies; discusses computerized
ordering and inventory control, and quantity discounts;
explains how to order supplies.
Covers employment opportunities for dental office
assistants; discusses different types of employment,
including the solo practice, group practice, managed
care facility and specialty practice; offers tips for
succeeding on job interviews; discusses other career
opportunities in dentistry. Unit VIII: Professional Development and Medicolegal
Ethics
Discusses concepts of professional development,
including attitude; self-esteem; professional attire;
business etiquette; verbal and nonverbal communication;
introductions; time and stress management; and
continuing education.
Discusses medicolegal ethics in healthcare; covers
the code of ethics; discusses aspects pertaining to the
healthcare record, including the purpose of ownership,
how to correct mistakes, the difference between
privileged and nonprivileged information, and the
importance of timeliness.Unit IX: Medical Office Practice 1
Unit X: Medical Office Practice 2
Unit XI: Medical Office Practice 3
Unit XII: How to Find a Job in Healthcare
Covers job-search correspondence, including resumes and cover letters.
Discusses job-search techniques such as networking and using online employment search engines.
Discusses job interviews; explains how to dress for an interview, what to bring to an interview, what to
expect during an interview; discusses common questions asked during an interview and how to follow up after an interview.
Computer Requirements
Students are required to have the following to complete this course:
• Intel Pentium® or equivalent processor
• Microsoft Windows® 98, Windows® 98 Second Edition, Windows®
Millennium Edition, Windows® NT 4 with Service Pack 6 or later or
Windows® 2000 Professional or later operating system
• 24MB RAM (Windows® 98 / Windows® 98 Second Edition); 32MB RAM (Windows®
Me / Windows® NT; 4.0); 64MB RAM (Windows® 2000 Home / Professional or Windows® XP)
• Plus an additional 8MB for each application running simultaneously
• 100MB available hard disk space minimum
• 2x CD-ROM drive or higher
• VGA or higher monitor recommended
• 16-Bit Sound Card or higher
• Standard USB Port
• Speakers connected to your sound card
• Microsoft® mouse or other compatible pointing device
• Printer
• Audio Cassette Player
Course Materials
Dental Office Assistant Study Guides
Twelve separate units will guide you through the Dental Office Assistant
program. These study units are broken into smaller sections, which will allow
you to better process and retain the material in the readings. Each study unit
chapter includes objectives, an overview, teacher's notes, and a self-check.
Dental Office Management
- by Ellen Dietz, Delmar Publishers
This comprehensive book takes readers through the various tasks associated with
front office dental procedures, preparing them for the office of the
21st century. Five sections -- the business of dentistry; practice
communications; clinical records management; business and financial records
management; and employment opportunities -- are supported by learning
objectives, key terms, and key concepts. Skill-Building for Success: Student
Activities (role-plays and problem - solving activities) and Skills Mastery
Assessment: Post-Tests are provided at the end of each chapter.
Medical Office Practice
- 7th Edition, by Phillip Atkinson, Delmar Publishers
This simulation is an introductory hands-on practice set that
introduces students to administrative concepts and routines in a medical
office, including scheduling appointments, transcription, and
insurance-forms preparation. It contains supplies, forms, procedures and cases
for over 30 activities drawn from practicing physicians' records. Includes an
audiotape which provides select voices in medical office dictation. A computer
disk contains templates, documents and simulated activities for scheduling
appointments, records management, and completing an insurance claim.
Dorland's Pocket Medical Dictionary, 27th
Edition -- Book and CD-ROM
Since 1898, Dorland's Pocket Medical Dictionary has set the world standard as
the most convenient, user-friendly portable reference on medical terminology. It
provides the accurate, clear, up-to-date definitions people expect from
Dorland's...in a highly compact, easy-to-use format. Now it's better than ever!
Delivers 2,500 new entries - 37,000 in all-encompassing all of the most
important new medical terms and definitions, including new drug names. Presents
the most complementary and alternative medicine coverage available in any small
medical dictionary. Offers an expanded full-color insert illustrating the
structure and function of the human body. Includes a CD-ROM with Dorland's
Electronic Medical Speller, Version 4.0 at no added cost, allowing you to
quickly and easily add 400,000 medical terms to your computer's spell checker.
Uses a new two-color design to make reference easier.
Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing®
Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing® delivers the customized training you need in a
motivating, engaging format. Work at your own pace with lesson content that
keeps you interested. This flexible program is an ideal choice for any would-be
fluent typist, including students, e-mail enthusiasts, and office professionals.
If you use the keyboard, you'll benefit from Mavis Beacon.
Access to Online Student Center
Along with your traditional course items, you will gain unlimited access to the
Online Student Center, where you can take exams and receive instantaneous Grade
Reports, chat real-time with other students, participate in online discussions.