Dental Assistant Traineeships 2021

Background

SA Dental Service is a health unit within the Central Adelaide Local Health Network.  We provide population health based dental services for children and eligible adults through clinics across South Australia in metropolitan and country areas.

Some clinics are located in hospitals or community health centres whilst others are located in school grounds or are discrete dental facilities. We also work in partnership with the University of Adelaide to educate and train many of the State’s dental professionals.

Oral health services are provided through a team approach with Dentists, Dental Therapists, Dental Assistants, Dental Technicians, Dental Hygienists supported by reception staff to care for clients.

Dental Assistant Traineeships

A Dental Assistant Traineeship is a 12 month program incorporating on the job training under supervision to develop the competency and skills required of a qualified Dental Assistant in addition to undertaking the Certificate III in Dental Assisting at TafeSA.

A probationary period applies during which time both the Trainee and the employer assess their suitability for the 12-month program.

During the 12 month program Trainee Dental Assistants learn and develop the skills to:

  • Provide chair-side dental assistance to dental practitioners
  • Prepare dental materials and equipment
  • Process, prepare and save radiographs
  • Maintain and promote infection control and contribute to reprocessing of reusable medical devices
  • Assist with oral health education as directed by the dental practitioner
  • Assist with routine administrative tasks including greeting clients, making appointments, answering telephone calls and entering patient details into records.

The DA Traineeship involves working closely with dental operators and their clients therefore communication skills and a willingness to learn about and assist in the oral health management of clients are essential.

At the completion of the 12 month training program, Dental Assistant Trainees will have developed skills to enable them to gain their DA qualification to work in a diverse range of environments such as general and specialty areas, teaching clinics and aged care.

Eligibility criteria

To be considered for a SA Dental Service Traineeship candidates must be

A resident of South Australia:

  • Aged between 17 and 24 years of age or
  • 17 and 30 years of age if you are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent.

No previous dental experience is required for a SA Dental Service DA Traineeship but it would be an advantage to gain some relevant work experience to make sure this pathway is for you.

(Please note - SA Dental Service is not able to provide work experience unless you are a Secondary School Student within an organised School work experience program).

Recruitment

SA Dental Service begins recruiting for the DA Traineeship program in September for the group commencing the following February. The recruitment process and associated timelines aimed at finding suitable candidates for the traineeship roles are described below.

Step 1 – Lodge Applications (September)

Step 2 – Written testing (Mid October)

Step 3 – Interviews (Late October)

Step 4 – Outcome (Early November)

Step 5 – Pre-employment screening (December)

Recommended action

To keep updated on DA Traineeship selection processes we recommend registering for a “Job Alert” on the SA Health Careers website.

  1. Log onto the SA Health Careers website
  2. When the page is loaded, select the “Job Alert” button on the left hand side.
  3. Enter your email address
  4. Keywords : Dental Assistant
  5. Tick the following items to ensure that all dental advertisements are drawn to your attention
  • Categories : Select All
  • Locations :Select All
  • Work Type : Select All

The job alert will last 90 days and details can be updated if required.

As positions are advertised, registered users will be sent an email to your nominated email address which will provide information of the positions available and a link to the position’s online application form.

To find out more see the full list of eligibility criteria and on the job training this program offers (PDF 116KB).