CDA 101 - The Dental Assisting Profession

(8 hours of lecture and 8 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to the dental assisting profession. Students will learn the role of professional dental assistants in dental office facilities and the application of standard of care under the Dental Practice Act through patient processing, chairside assisting, risk management, guidelines for informed consent, patients’ records including the guidelines for charting entries for clinical record, reporting child abuse and neglect, regulatory, credentialing, and professional organizations. (No Prerequisite)

CDA 102 - Sciences in Dentistry

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, define, and locate structures and functions of the human body through class discussions and demonstrations with special emphasis on general anatomy, oral anatomy, and dental nomenclature as an important part in the practice of dentistry. (Prerequisite CDA 101)

CDA 103 - Oral Health Preservation and the Prevention of Dental Disease

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to oral health preservation and prevention of dental disease through class discussions and demonstrations. They will also learn the importance of good oral health in relation to general health; the dental disease process and how to prevent it. They will be required to do a presentation on how the two most common dental disease processes such as dental caries and periodontitis takes place. They will demonstrate good oral hygiene practices such as proper brushing and flossing technique to be able to perform oral hygiene instructions (OHI) to educate patients and perform topical fluoride application which is an essential duty of a dental assistant. (Prerequisite CDA 102)

CDA 104 - Infection Prevention in Dentistry

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to microbiology, disease transmission, and infection control. The significant role of a dental assistant in disease control in the dental office as required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will be thoroughly discussed and demonstrated. Students will be required and graded to simulate proper infection control protocol. (Prerequisite CDA 103)

CDA 105 - Occupational Health and Safety

(8 hours of lecture and 8 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to occupational health and safety. They will also learn the roles and responsibilities of the various agencies and how they affect the dental office. Students will learn how to handle chemicals safely, how to identify correctly dispose of waste materials, and why it is important to maintain the dental unit waterlines. In addition, students will learn how to protect themselves against workplace injuries. Injuries commonly associated with the clinical practice of dental assisting include headaches; back, neck and shoulder pain; and other musculoskeletal disorders. (Prerequisite CDA 104)

CDA 106 - Patient Information and Assessment

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to patient information and assessment. They will have background knowledge and skills to assist the dentist in assessing a patient’s overall health and dental health status. This includes diagnostic information, working with medically compromised patient, or assisting the team in a medical emergency, students will be able to understand that value of being a member of the dental team. They will perform paperwork and digital (Dentrix) charting of patient’s medical and dental records, take vital signs and photos. Students have to demonstrate the correct transfer of a wheelchair-bound patient; aid the dentist in providing treatment; serve as a source of information for the patient and the family; and make the patient more comfortable and reduce their anxiety as well. (Prerequisite CDA 105)

CDA 107 - Foundation of Clinical Dentistry

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to foundation of clinical dentistry. They will learn the dental office layout, how clinical skills are performed, how dental care is delivered, the specific instruments and supplies used in most general dental procedures, and the importance of patient comfort during dental treatment with the use of moisture control, as well as anesthesia and pain control methods. Students are required and tested to prepare the dental treatment area for patient care; chairside assistance; instruments, materials, and equipment identification; and setting up and breaking down the operative room. (Prerequisite CDA 106)

CDA 108 - Radiographic Imaging

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms to dental radiography. The students will learn how to use x-radiation to produce diagnostic-quality images with minimal exposure, manage patient, maintain proper infection control, legalities of dental radiography, and follow radiation safety procedures. They will also learn the basic principles and techniques for film-based and digital imaging. Students will be required to perform, demonstrate and get tested to identify the instruments, materials, and equipment necessary for intraoral dental radiography as well as to take manual and digital x-rays on a manikin and live patients, and transfer the digital images taken to patient’s record on Dentrix. (Prerequisite CDA 107)

CDA 109 - Dental Materials

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to dental materials. Students will have a level of background knowledge and kills necessary to become competent with dental materials used today in the clinical setting. They will be required to perform, demonstrate, and get tested to identify the instruments, materials, and manipulation of materials such as resin and amalgam materials, placement and removal of gingival retraction cord, mixing cements and bases for cavity and crown preparations, alginate impressions, and prepare acrylic for provisional coverage. (Prerequisite CDA 108)

CDA 110 - Assisting in Comprehensive Dental Care

(80 hours of lecture and 112 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to assisting in comprehensive dental care. They will be provided a level of knowledge and skill that will prepare them for clinical dentistry. They will be required to demonstrate clinical competency in the general and specialized areas of dentistry. They will also be prepared for graduation, taking the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners (TSBDE) and Dental Assisting National Board, Inc. (DANB) exams, and a career in dental assisting. (Prerequisite CDA 109)

CDA 111 - Dental Administration and Communication Skills

(16 hours of lecture and 16 hours of laboratory): Students will learn how to pronounce, spell, identify, and define terms related to dental administration and communication skills. They will have an overview of how human relations play an important role when working and communicating with colleagues and patients. In addition, they will learn the communication methods used in dental setting, technology of the dental practice, manage the financial aspects of a practice including inventory, and marketing their personal skills for lifelong learning. Students will demonstrate an effective communication skill as part of their clinical performance; prepare a professional resume and practice appointment scheduling and insurance protocol on Dentrix. (Prerequisite CDA 110)

CDA 112 - Externship

(120 hours of clinical externship): Students are required to perform and finish clinical externship to complete the program. Clinical externship is the application of knowledge and skills students learned in the classroom. Students’ externship consists of 4-8 consecutive weeks and 20-40 hours per week with a total of 120 hours. Externship hours must begin the week after classroom lectures and laboratory work has been completed. Special circumstances must be cleared with the school. Students participating in externship and clinical training work are under the supervision of a qualified assigned preceptor, as determined by school faculty in participating sites, and under the general supervision of school director and externship site’s supervisor. They are evaluated by supervisory personnel and evaluations are placed in the students’ permanent records. Externship and clinical guidelines and requirements for each program may be obtained from the School Director.

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