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Dental nurses assist Dentists with all treatments. This mainly involves setting up the surgery prior to appointments, preparing crown and filling materials, taking X- rays, keeping the surgery sterile to avoid cross infections and making patients feel comfortable.
The Good
It's quite social - you meet loads of different patients and can build relationships over time
You're helping people to have healthier teeth and to overcome their fear
There's a lot of variety in the job
The Bad
In general, this is not a very well paid career
Some patients will ignore you and focus on the dentist
It can be stressful, particularly with nervous patients
Start Salary
£ 16K
Skill Requirements:
You need to be a sociable person with the ability to get on with a wide range of people. You will also need to be patient - both with the Dentist as well as your patients!
Typical Career Path:
The most likely progression is to become a Dental Hygienist. This does require further full - time study though so this is best done when you still have the freedom to do so. Other than this, progression opportunities are limited. There are a number of possibilities to take specialist courses though such as radiography, oral health, orthodontics, and sedation.
How to get into this career ?
People wanting to enter the profession now need to be registered with the British Dental Association.
School Subject Requirements
You will need a decent set of GCSE's, preferably with some science subjects.
Uni/College Requirements
There are 2 possible routes to qualifying. The first is the National Certificate for Dental Nursing and this can be completed part - time over a year. The second option is an NVQ in Dental Nursing.
Alternative routes
As you now have to be registered with the BDA, learning on the job is no longer possible. If you're a receptionist in a Dental practice, you can study either of the qualifications and then change roles.
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