Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

• Citizenship
• Citizen of the United States
• (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified candidates in accordance with chapter 3, section A, paragraph 3g, this part.) Education
• Associate Degree or higher in an accredited dental hygiene program
• This program must be accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA)
• Transcripts Required Licensure
• Applicants must be currently licensed to practice as a dental hygienist with a full, current, and unrestricted license in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States, or the District of Columbia
• Certification
• Public Law 97-35 requires that persons who administer radiologic procedures meet the credentialing standards in 42 CFR Part 75
• Essentially, they must have successfully completed an educational program that meets or exceeds the standards described in that regulation, and is accredited by an organization recognized by the Department of Education, and be certified as radiographers in their field
• Accredited dental hygiene programs contain curriculum addressing radiologic procedures which will meet the requirement for certification as dental radiographers
• English Language Proficiency
• Dental hygienists must be proficient in spoken and written English as required by 38 U.S.C. 7402(d), and 7407(d)
• GS-09 Experience: Applicants must have at least 1 year of experience as a Dental Hygienist equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-08)
• In addition, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSA's: Ability to assess the patient's medical, dental, anxiety/phobias, medications and comorbidities for safe patient care
• Ability to assess the impact of patient's medical and dental condition on maintaining oral health, recognize age-related changes in individual patients, adapt patient environment, and maximize patient's physical comfort
• Skill in detecting plaque and calculus, dental abnormalities/pathologies, assessing inflammation and providing safe instrumentation for each procedure
• Knowledge to select appropriate available fluoride products and indications/limitations for safe and proper application
• Knowledge of hygiene procedures in order to explain the process and indication, complications and expected treatment outcomes for each
• Knowledge of proper usage of dental radiography equipment, radiation safety, assessment of proper image capture and interpretation of films
• Skill in educating patients and caregivers on periodontal disease, wellness, health maintenance, oral hygiene practices, parafunctional habits, and effects of illness, addictions, medications and tobacco on the oral cavity
• Assignments
• Employees at this level serve as staff dental hygienists at the full performance level
• It is expected that they provide direct patient care and receive guidance from higher-level or supervisory staff members for only the most complex patients and require only general supervision from a dentist
• Assignments at this level include but are not limited to: patient medical assessment (e.g
• medical/dental history, social history, vital signs, full periodontal assessment and charting), disease and treatment management recommendations, denture care, scaling and root planning, radiographs/image interpretation, patient education (e.g
• post-procedure, tobacco cessation, caries and perio-disease prevention), behavior management, management of stable medically compromised patients (including risk factors), instrument sharpening, inter-service communication
• Preferred Experience: Motivated individual adept at practicing in a fast paced, group practice environment
• Experience with medically compromised and physically handicapped patients is preferred
• Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/
• The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-09
• Physical Requirements: Work is generally sedentary
• Flexibility is required to accommodate events and activities occurring in other than normal duty hours
• Mobility is required in terms of staging and assisting staff with equipment and other required materials.