Dental Administrative & Clinical Assistant

The Dental Administrative Assistant is a versatile role designed to bridge the gap between clinical operations, administrative strategy, and staff development. This individual serves as a primary support for grant management and inter-departmental outreach, while remaining agile to fill clinical gaps as an Unlicensed Dental Assistant. A key component of this role is mentorship and training, ensuring that new registration staff and unlicensed assistants are successfully integrated into the clinic’s unique workflow.

Key Responsibilities

Administrative, Grant & Outreach Support

Grant & Project Coordination: Support the Manager in tracking grant-funded deliverables and gathering data for reporting.

Strategic Outreach: Cultivate active connections between the dental department and other NACC services to ensure holistic patient care.

Operational Agility: Serve as the "fill-in" lead, stepping into administrative or nonlicensed clinical roles whenever staffing needs or patient volumes fluctuate.

Project Assistance: Execute administrative tasks as directed by the Manager to support clinic growth, including document preparation and meeting coordination.

Community Engagement: Represent the dental clinic at community events or internal health fairs to promote oral health services.

Training & Staff Development

Registration Mentorship: Train and onboard new staff members in the registration role, ensuring mastery of scheduling, insurance verification, and patient intake protocols.

Clinical Onboarding Support: Act as a preceptor for incoming Unlicensed Dental Assistants, guiding them on clinic flow, sterilization standards, and chairside etiquette.

Process Standardization: Assist the Manager in creating or updating training materials to maintain consistency across the team.

Clinical Support (As Needed)

Chairside Assistance: Provide unlicensed support to DDS, including room prep, sterilization, and basic procedural assistance.

Workflow Optimization: Identify bottlenecks in the patient experience and work with the Manager to implement efficiency-driven solutions.

Qualifications

Leadership Qualities: Demonstrated ability to train others with patience and clarity; a "team-first" mentality with a willingness to pivot tasks daily.

Experience: Strong background in dental administration; prior experience in community health or grant-supported environments is a significant plus.

Adaptability: Must be comfortable moving between high-level administrative tasks and hands-on clinical support.

Communication: High emotional intelligence for inter-departmental collaboration and a commitment to providing culturally competent care within the Native American community.

Technical Proficiency: Expert-level knowledge of Electronic Dental Records (EDR) and office software to effectively train others.

Education and/or experience: High school diploma or general education degree (GED) and one to three months related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Computer skills required: Internet Software; Spreadsheet Software (Excel); Word Processing Software (Word); Electronic Mail Software (Outlook) and Medical/Dental

Health Information Software. (EPIC OCHIN WISDOM)

Competencies:

Diversity - Demonstrates knowledge of EEO policy; Shows respect and sensitivity for cultural differences; Educates others on the value of diversity;

Promotes a harassment free environment; Builds a diverse workforce.

Ethics - Treats people with respect; Keeps commitments; Inspires the trust of others; Works with integrity and ethically; Upholds organizational values.

Adaptability - Adapts to changes in the work environment; Manages competing demands; Changes approach or method to best fit the situation; Able to deal with frequent change, delays, or unexpected events.

Attendance/Punctuality - Is consistently at work and on time; Ensures work responsibilities are covered when absent; Arrives at meetings and appointments on time.

Customer Service - Manages difficult or emotional customer situations; Responds promptly to customer needs; Solicits customer feedback to improve service; Responds to requests for service and assistance; Meets commitments.

Dependability - Follows instructions, responds to management direction; Takes responsibility for own actions; Keeps commitments; Commits to long hours of work when necessary to reach goals; Completes tasks on time or notifies appropriate person with an alternate plan.

Interpersonal Skills - Focuses on solving conflict, not blaming; Maintains confidentiality; Listens to others without interrupting; Keeps emotions under control; Remains open to others' ideas and tries new things.

Oral Communication - Speaks clearly and persuasively in positive or negative situations; Listens and gets clarification; Responds well to questions; Demonstrates group presentation skills; Participates in meetings.

Organizational Support - Follows policies and procedures; Completes administrative tasks correctly and on time; Supports organization's goals and values; Benefits organization through outside activities; Supports affirmative action and respects diversity.

Physical Demands and Work Environment:

Continually required to sit

Frequently required to utilize hand and finger dexterity

Frequently required to talk or hear

Occasionally required to bend, stoop, kneel or crawl

While performing the duties of this job, the noise level in the work environment is usually moderate

The employee must frequently lift and/or move up to 10 pounds

Specific vision abilities required by this job include: Close vision