Whether you’ve already started your dental nursing diploma or are still thinking about it, you might be wondering what kind of jobs your day-to-day schedule could entail. We look at some of the vital jobs dental nurses do on a daily basis.

Welcoming Patients
If you’ve been a patient at a dentist before you’ll know it can be a slightly daunting experience, going into your appointment not quite knowing what to expect.

As a dental nurse you are the first line of contact after reception, so it’s part and parcel of the job to be able to build rapport with your patients and provide support and advice in a friendly and approachable manner.

Making the patient feel at ease throughout their time with you is one of the most important jobs you’ll do in practice.

Chair-Side Support
Providing attentive chair-side assistance to the dentist during clinical procedures is something you will do many times throughout the day and a skill that will grow as you learn. As a dental nurse, it’s your job to make sure the tools that the dentist requires are always available and ready for use. Dental nurses are the backbone of a good dental practice with much of their role dedicated to preparation and organisation. Having a good working relationship with your dentist is essential.

Administration and Organisation
You know yourself from a visit to the dentist that patients are in and out quickly, with a lot of equipment needed for each patient; keeping calm under pressure and organised when there’s lots going on around you are key to your job. Maintaining accurate patient records in a discreet manner is vital to the day-to-day running of the practice.

Clean Down
Just as important as all the other elements of your day, effective clean down and decontamination of instruments is vital to the health and safety of the dental practice. As a dental nurse it’s your responsibility to maintain excellent standards of hygiene, infection prevention and cross-contamination control at all times. Ensuring a safe working environment for all.

Stock Control
An efficient dental practice can’t run without the right equipment to hand. One of your jobs as a dental nurse might be to take charge of regular inventory checks, making sure the dental practice is never out of stock of vital instruments, supplies and equipment for patient procedures.

Preparation
‘Success is where preparation and opportunity meet’, as the saying goes.

The success of any dental procedure relies heavily on the pre-preparation by the dental team. This includes checking the patient’s records and consent forms, checking inventory and all necessary equipment for the procedure through to sterilisation of the surgical room and maintaining a high level of cross-infection control throughout.

Ensuring that all the right equipment is in place for each procedure is one of the first jobs a dental nurse will do each day.