Dental Hygienist

Are you passionate about improving oral health and making a real difference in our community? Join our team as a Dental Hygienist, where your work will directly impact the health and wellbeing of patients who rely on us as their dental safety net. You’ll provide preventive care, while educating patients about oral health’s connection to overall wellness.

As part of our public health mission, we’re proud to offer opportunities for loan repayment, making this position an investment in your career and your community. If you’re compassionate, skilled, and driven to serve, we’d love to welcome you to our team.

The City of Sioux Falls is an eligible employer for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. In addition, this position may also be eligible for the NHSC Loan Repayment Program.

Responsibilities:

1. Provide oral prophylaxis, including instruction for proper home care techniques for oral hygiene. Administer local anesthesia and nitrous oxide sedation. Provide oral screening and evaluation of patients regarding caries detection, periodontal pathology, medical history, and exposing of radiographs. Provide supra- and sub-gingival scaling and root planing.
2. Maintain patient records of treatment. Assist patients in completing medical history statements. Record oral conditions of the teeth and surrounding tissues, progress and therapy notes, appointments, and the number of patients treated, and type of treatment administered.
3. Expose radiographs on patients, including bitewing, periapical, occlusal, and panoramic X-ray. Select type of radiograph that will be necessary for patient’s mouth.
4. Responsible for the cleaning and sterilization of instruments and disinfecting equipment and work areas. Maintain a number of recurring reports, including those concerning patients, materials, and equipment. Assist the dental team in expediting patient care whenever possible.
5. Present lectures and demonstrations in oral health care to various patient groups. Seek professional continuing education in order to improve or maintain knowledge, skills, and abilities to provide efficient, effective, and appropriate dental care to patients.
6. Perform other such duties and functions as are necessary or incidental to the proper performance of this position.

Minimum Qualifications:

1. Graduation from an accredited dental hygiene school or any such combination of education, experience, and training as may be acceptable to the hiring authority.
2. Hold a valid license to practice dental hygiene in South Dakota.
3. Hold a valid local anesthesia and nitrous oxide license.

Knowledge and Skills:

• Knowledge of procedures and equipment for dental imaging.
• Knowledge and skill to operate, adjust, maintain, and clean dental equipment and materials.
• Knowledge of oral anatomy, oral physiology and histology, the principles and techniques of preventive dentistry, and the dental instruments and materials to perform a variety of specialized preventive dental hygiene procedures, including root planing.
• Knowledge of oral pathology and periodontology sufficient to recognize a variety of abnormal conditions and provide the necessary prophylactic and therapeutic dental hygiene treatment.
• Knowledge of medical diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease as they relate to the care and treatment of the teeth in order to perform bedside prophylaxis, and provide therapeutic dental hygiene procedures and home care instruction to patients.
• Skill in providing individual and group oral health care instructions to patients and the nursing staff in order to motivate patients with special needs toward the practice of effective oral hygiene techniques.
• Skill in performing specialized preventive dental hygiene procedures.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships.