Staff Dentist

The Dentist works as a key member of the multidisciplinary health care team providing dental services to the patients of the community health center.  Primary, preventive and episodic care is compassionately delivered, being mindful of patient needs, rights, and responsibilities.   The clinical program is divided into units fostering a team approach to care.  The Dentist will assume an active role on the unit team, becoming involved with unit quality improvement activities, meetings and other team building efforts.  

II.         Essential Functions/Responsibilities:

• Develops a rapport with patients striving to build a dentist-patient partnership that facilitates marked familiarity with patients’ medical and treatment history, care needs, and psychosocial factors as a means to manage patient’s risk factors and improve patient outcomes.
• Develops a plan of care for each patient including:   complete medical history, dental examination, diagnosis, appropriate treatment and/or referral, including hospitalization where necessary.
• Stresses the importance of preventive dental care measures.
• Confers with consulting physicians, nurse, patients, and patients’ families concerning treatment and care of patients.
• Establishes an effective working relationship with public and private dentists and other clinical care referral resources.
• Attends all required staff meetings and participates in the community health center’s Q/A program.
• Performs other necessary duties as required by the community health center to meet the needs of providing dental health care.
• Reviews medical histories and examines patients who visit the facility seeing dental services.
• Uses all available resources in diagnosis and treatment, such as laboratory and radiological testing, in an appropriate and cost efficient manner.
• Diagnosis dental disorders and administers dental treatment services to patients.
• Refers those cases that require specialist services, but maintains responsibility, assuring that continuity of care is provided.
• Provides primary, preventive, and episodic/emergency care to patients.
• Directs coordination of care based on patient’s health, treatment, and social needs.
• Completes all records and reports as assigned.
• Provides dental supervision to support staff in implementing the plan of dental care.
• Supervises dentist extenders and profession students during clinical rotations.
• Provides encounter information necessary for billing purposes.
• Participates in the development and implementation of a regularly updated quality assurance plan for the organization.
• Participates in the Health Promotion/Disease Prevention activities required by the U. S. Public Health Service.
• Ensures an appropriate environment for the administration of health care by keeping all equipment and work areas in a clean, safe, and orderly fashion.
• In performing job duties, may be exposed to blood and body fluids, hazardous chemicals, operating technical equipment and prolonged standing.
• Performs all other duties as assigned.

Skills/Certifications:

• Licensed to practice dentistry in the State of South Carolina.
• Current Basic Life Support (BLS) and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certificate.
• Must maintain DEA and controlled substance registration in good standing.