The leading Ohio Dental Assisting School program at Cleveland Dental Institute (CDI) is an eleven-week course that allows program students to develop their skills in a real, private practice setting at the CDI headquarters.
Throughout the program, students will work alongside instructors, full-time assistants and CDI Doctors in order to develop real-world experience and a well-rounded dental assisting education.
About Cleveland Dental Institute
CDI is the educational home for Advanced Education in all disciplines of Dentistry. CDI offers an ADA Commission on Dental Accreditation, accredited Advanced Education in General Dentistry Program, located at 4071 Lee Road, Cleveland, OH. In August of 2019, the Institute was approved by the Ohio Board of Colleges and Schools and began teaching a program in Dental Assisting at the 4071 Lee Road location.
Mission of the CDI Ohio Dental Assisting School
The Mission of the Dental Assisting Certificate Program is:
- To graduate outstanding Dental Assisting professionals who possess the skills, knowledge, and experience to be a leading contributor to the success of the dental practice and the oral health of the patients they will one day serve and
- To become ambassadors in their community for the values and professionalism inspired by their experience at CDI.
Educational Goals of the CDI Ohio Dental Assisting School
This Dental Assisting program provides an education based in the clinical, social, behavioral, and biological sciences. The curriculum is delivered and assessed by fulfilling three components of: didactic instruction, simulation performance, and clinical care. Emphasis is placed on prescribed goals and objectives, curriculum delivery, and outcomes. The major emphasis of dental assisting education is educating a dental auxiliary that is ethically and morally responsible, clinically competent, and facilitates comprehensive qualify care. The Dental Assisting program will utilize current theory, emerging technology, and evaluation in concert with local dentist professionals to ensure graduates have the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to be successful.
Goal Criteria of the CDI Ohio Dental Assisting School
The goals listed below will serve as the criteria for student evaluation and graduation:
- Professionalism and Ethics
- Professional behavior encompasses many components including a team approach, positive verbal and nonverbal communication, interpersonal skills, attention to feedback, protocol adherence, thorough and complete documentation, and time management. The Dental Assisting graduate must be able to practice using a team concept in a professional manner.
- Dental Assisting Clinical Practice Standards
- The Dental Assisting graduate is qualified to be a licensed health professional who provides supportive services under the direction and supervision of a licensed dentist as well as provides treatment services to patients as allowable by state regulations. The clinical standards of dental assisting practice apply principles from the biomedical, clinical, and psychosocial sciences to diverse populations.
- Supportive and Clinical Practice Standards: The Dental Assisting graduate must be able to provide supportive functions under the direction of the dentist before, during, and after treatment as well as perform a variety of direct treatment procedures allowable by state regulations. These functions include educational, preventive, and therapeutic services designed to assist the dentist and/or participate in completing treatment procedures to achieve the goals of the treatment plan and establish optimal oral health for the patient.
- Health Promotion
- Trends toward consumerism, self-care, disease prevention, health promotion, and health lifestyles mean that patients, wherever they might be, want and need information on oral health and disease. Teaching and health promotion strategies are involved in the full range of dental assisting actions directed toward helping diverse populations achieve oral wellness.
- Education and Communication – The Dental Assisting graduate must be able to promote the values of oral and general health to the public. The Dental Assistant often spends more time with the patient than the dentist. During that time, the Dental Assistant can further education, answer questions by the patient and reinforce the dentist’s treatment recommendations to improve oral health, appearance, and function.
- Professional Commitment and Advancement
- For professional advancement and lifelong learning, the Dental Assistant must be able to derive the relevance from rapidly changing information. Knowledge of the scientific method ensures that actions taken by the Dental Assistant are based on scientific evidence, not merely on ritual, tradition, intuition, or personal preference. This Dental Assisting program intends to foster a commitment to servicing the professions.
