Bethel Park academy trains students to become dental assistants
For many people, thinking about their next trip to the dentist bring a shudder.
But think, too, about the folks who work alongside the dentist, handling various tasks while reassuring patients that everything is going to be OK.
Students participate in practical lessons at Cornerstone Dental Assistant Academy.
That’s what the instructors at Cornerstone Dental Assistant Academy in Bethel Park want their students to take into their careers.
“We teach the dental assistant about empathy, showing empathy and putting yourself in that patient’s shoes,” John Hatfield Jr. said.
He and his partner in the venture, Hopwood resident Amanda Newhouse, pride themselves on being able to put themselves in their students’ shoes: Between them, they have nearly 46 years of experience in the vocation they’re teaching.
“We’re dental assistants training you to also be dental assistants,” Newhouse said. “What better way to learn the profession than by two instructors who know the job? We know what our expectation is, from a dentist’s standpoint.”
From the standpoint of dentists, qualified assistants are in demand.
Newhouse and Hatfield monitor employment websites, including a popular one that has been listing more than 100 jobs for any given week in the Pittsburgh region, alone. And that represents just one avenue for filling jobs.
“John and I personally are getting phone calls and emails from different doctors weekly, asking about our students,” Newhouse said. “We can’t guarantee job placement with our program, but the probability of you landing a job during the program or after is pretty high.”
Instruction at Cornerstone focuses on “the basic knowledge of what a dental assistant truly needs to know in order to land that entry-level position,” she said. “Upon completion of our 13-week program, a student can work as a dental assistant for approximately two years, or 3,500 working hours in an office, and then they can apply to take the certification exam.”
The Certified Dental Assistant examination is administered by the Dental Assisting National Board. The same body also offers dental assisting expanded functions exams, and Newhouse passed hers in 2013.
“Once you have a fairly basic understanding of the dental field and the different components of it, there are so many ways that your future career can benefit from it,” she said.
The duties of a dental assistant are among the most comprehensive and varied in the dental office. A dental assistant performs many tasks requiring both interpersonal and technical skills, and they may include:
• Assisting the dentist during a variety of treatment procedures;
• Taking and developing dental radiographs (X-rays);
• Asking about the patient’s medical history, and taking blood pressure and pulse;
• Serving as an infection control officer, developing infection control protocol and preparing and sterilizing instruments and equipment;
• Helping patients feel comfortable before, during and after dental treatment
• Providing patients with instructions for oral care following surgery or other dental treatment procedures, such as the placement of a restoration;
• Teaching patients appropriate oral hygiene strategies to maintain oral health, including tooth brushing, flossing and nutritional counseling;
• Taking impressions of patients’ teeth;
• Performing office management tasks;
• Communicating with patients and suppliers;
• Helping to provide direct patient care in all dental specialties, including orthodontics, pediatric dentistry, periodontics and oral surgery.
Source: American Dental Association
Newhouse met Hatfield when she applied for a position with Aspen Dental in Uniontown – “I did a phone interview for about 45 minutes,” he recalled, followed by an in-person session – and they remained colleagues for several years.
“We separated for a bit, but this brought us back together,” Hatfield said about their Cornerstone endeavor.
Newhouse began looking into an instruction program for dental assistants two years ago. She approached Hatfield with the idea, and in early 2020, they drove to Harrisburg to attend a state Department of Education program to launch the process of opening a licensed academy.
They checked their schedules to see what would work better for the trip, March or April.
“Luckily, we decided on March, because then a week later, the shutdown happened,” Hatfield said about initial actions toward preventing the spread of COVID-19. “But at least we had the application in hand so we could start the process.”
That included approaching established dental practices about serving as potential partners.
“We started talking with South Hills Dental Arts about hosting the program here in September of last year,” Newhouse said. “They came on board fairly quickly and said that they would love to host the program here.”
Cornerstone received final approval from the state this Aug. 19, and the first group of students reported Sept. 24. They meet from 8 to 3:30 on the upper floor of South Hills Dental Arts, 70 Fort Couch Road.
The course of study includes a 60-hour externship with a practice to complement classroom instruction and operatory coursework.
“We mock set up procedures that they’ll be doing as dental assistants,” Newhouse explained. “We want to offer them as much hands-on experience as we can, so then they’re better prepared to get into the job market and the workplace.”
Along the way, students learn about various facets of dentistry, including the type of terminology that may mystify the people sitting in chairs with their mouths open.
“There’s no doubt that the dental assistant needs to understand the basics of all the procedures that dentist is performing,” Newhouse said. “Breaking it down in layman’s terms to the patient is important.”
She and Hatfield, a McKeesport resident who received his training while serving in the U.S. Air Force, hope to lay the groundwork for more professionals in their chosen field.
“The need is there for dental assistants, substantially,” Newhouse said. “Now we just need students to fill those positions.”
Cornerstone’s winter session starts Jan. 7. For more information, visit www.cornerstonedentalassistantacad.com.