What does an orthodontic assistant do?
An Orthodontic Assistant works under the supervision of an orthodontist. They prepare the appointment rooms prior to patients visits, take the patients oral health history, assess patients through examining them, and determine their needs for orthodontic care.
Orthodontic assistant responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real orthodontic assistant resumes:
- Assist in intravenous sedation, prepare syringes with proper medication, placement of EKG leads, record and monitor during procedures.
- Monitor patients under iv sedation.
- Deliver invisalign aligners and place attachments on patients.
- Assist in orthodontics including taking pictures, panoramic and impressions for invisalign and traditional braces.
- Remain up to date on CPR certification.
- Review contracts, HIPAA regulations, and payment plans.
- Fit and instruct headgear, instruct and educate patients.
- Assist DDS in placing appliances as well as brackets.
- Comply with HIPAA regulations while filing patient dental history and paperwork.
- Prepare patients to be put under general anesthetic, set up EKG.
- Learned about different wires and placement of wires, as well as placement of ortho bands.
- Work in parallel taking x-rays, impressions, routine maintenance and removal of various types of orthodontics.
- Prepare cases (bridges, crowns, partials and dentures, implants) daily for laboratory pick-up.
- Assist team of dentists for wide range of procedures including crown & bridge, fillings, and dentures.
- Perform assistant jobs as well as learning sterilization, OSHA, lab procedures and tasks, and secretarial work.
Orthodontic assistant skills and personality traits
We calculated that 38% of Orthodontic Assistants are proficient in Patients, HIPAA, and Patient Care. They’re also known for soft skills such as Technical skills, Communication skills, and Leadership skills.
We break down the percentage of Orthodontic Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Patients, 38%
Provided customer service to patients including billing questions of itemized billing statements in correlation with continuing care
- HIPAA, 6%
FRONT DESK COORDINATOR: Managed scheduling for 7 doctors, ensuring record and patient confidentiality were in compliance with HIPAA standards.
- Patient Care, 5%
Performed all Orthodontic Assistant responsibilities including patient care and record keeping.
- Chair Side, 5%
Chair Side Assassinating Removing Orthodontic TiesRetying Taking Impressions Pouring/Trimming Models Setting patients up for an X-Ray Developing X-Rays
- Infection Control, 5%
Serve as an infection control officer, developing infection control protocol, preparing and sterilizing instruments and equipment.
- OSHA, 3%
Performed assistant jobs as well as learning sterilization, OSHA, lab procedures and tasks, and secretarial work.
Most orthodontic assistants use their skills in "patients," "hipaa," and "patient care" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential orthodontic assistant responsibilities here:
Detail oriented. While "detail oriented" is last on this skills list, don't underestimate its importance to orthodontic assistant responsibilities. Much of what an orthodontic assistant does relies on this skill, seeing as "dental assistants must follow specific rules and protocols, such as infection control procedures, when helping dentists treat patients." Here is a resume example of how this skill is used in the everyday duties of orthodontic assistants: "detailed charting, patient education, sterilization, lab duties, pouring and making of models"
The three companies that hire the most orthodontic assistants are:
- Benevis
32 orthodontic assistants jobs
- Dental Care Alliance13 orthodontic assistants jobs
- Familia Dental9 orthodontic assistants jobs
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Compare different orthodontic assistants
Orthodontic assistant vs. Dental officer
A Dental Nurse assists dentists in carrying out different kinds of oral-care procedures. They look after patient records and make notes when the dentist is examining a patient.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an orthodontic assistant are more likely to require skills like "hipaa," "patient care," "chair side," and "osha." On the other hand, a job as a dental officer requires skills like "oral surgery," "dentures," "dental program," and "dental surgery." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
On average, dental officers reach similar levels of education than orthodontic assistants. Dental officers are 3.3% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and 40.9% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Orthodontic assistant vs. Dental nurse
An Assistant to the Chairperson performs various administrative functions, such as faculty appointment and promotion, special projects management and coordination, and research administration. They report directly to the chairperson.
While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that orthodontic assistant responsibilities requires skills like "hipaa," "chair side," "osha," and "cpr." But a dental nurse might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "oral surgery," "surgical procedures," "dental clinic," and "vital signs."
In general, dental nurses achieve similar levels of education than orthodontic assistants. They're 4.6% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 40.9% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Orthodontic assistant vs. Dental aide
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from orthodontic assistant resumes include skills like "patients," "infection control," "osha," and "cpr," whereas a dental aide is more likely to list skills in "infection control procedures," "dental clinic," "dental program," and "dental assistants. "
Dental aides typically earn similar educational levels compared to orthodontic assistants. Specifically, they're 1.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 4.6% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Orthodontic assistant vs. Assistant to the chairperson
Types of orthodontic assistant
Updated January 8, 2025
