Here is an expanded 2600+ word blog post on dental assistant programs in Memphis, TN:
Have you ever wondered who handles all those essential background tasks in a dental office that pave the way for patients to receive quality oral care? Who ensures the seamless flow between dentist chairs and hygienist stations that puts visitors at ease during a check-up or procedure? Who assists directly chairside passing instruments, managing suction and x-ray equipment? That key role making the physicians’ vital work possible is the dental assistant.
As a dental assistant, you’ll wear many hats in delivering vital patient support while learning specialized clinical skills. Responsibilities range from welcoming patients and preparing treatment rooms to sterilizing dental tools and assisting chairside during procedures. You’ll also play a lead role in dental health education for patients while managing admin functions like scheduling, records and payments behind the scenes. It’s a diverse, stimulating career filled with human connection, continual learning and immense personal reward.
The Memphis metro area provides a thriving landscape to launch your dental assisting career amid major healthcare system growth. Thanks to rapid population expansion and low cost of living drawing new residents [1], demand for medical service providers continues rising across the Tennessee region. Outpatient healthcare jobs are projected to grow 16% in Memphis over the next decade—and dental assistants will be at the center of meeting increasing oral care needs [2]. With so much momentum, Memphis offers prime conditions to start crafting your dental credentials now.
This local’s guide will illuminate key facts on what dental assistants do day-to-day, profile exceptional training programs in Memphis, highlight career growth pathways and provide insider advice from working dental assistants themselves on excelling in the field. Let’s explore how you can turn motivation into a meaningful, prosperous profession improving community health in Memphis.
Your Day-to-Day Duties as a Dental Assistant in Memphis
While daily tasks will vary depending on your practice setting and specialty, most dental assistants take on a mixture of clinical and administrative responsibilities in supporting dentists chairside and running efficient operations behind the scenes.
On the clinical side, common duties include:
- Preparing treatment rooms for patient visits
- Sterilizing and arranging tray set-ups of dental instruments
- Assisting dentists during examinations and procedures
- Operating suction equipment and other technologies like x-ray machines to expose radiographs
- Taking impressions or measurements for fittings like mouthguards and dentures
- Educating patients about oral health topics like proper brushing and flossing techniques
On the administrative side, dental assistants frequently handle:
- Managing patient scheduling, insurance and payments
- Maintaining digital records and charts in dental software programs
- Communicating follow-ups for appointments, prescription orders or test results
- Purchasing supplies and materials for the practice
- Overseeing sterilization and disinfection protocols
As you gain more experience over your career, you may choose to specialize in areas like orthodontics, surgery, pediatrics or public health. You might also move into supervisory lead assistant roles directing teams and training new assistants. Opportunities to advance by learning specialized techniques like coronal polishing or assisting implant placement also become available. But most importantly, you’ll change lives daily by making quality dental care possible through your efforts supporting clinicians chairside and running efficient operations behind the scenes.
Memphis Dental Assisting School Spotlights
With dentistry a major employment sector thanks to the region’s expanding healthcare footprint, Memphis hosts several highly regarded dental assisting programs geared to different learning needs:
Concorde Career College
The Concorde Career College dental assisting diploma program immerses students in 33 weeks of specialized dental courses led by working clinical professionals. Through a balanced mix of classroom lectures and hands-on labs, core skills like patient communication, x-rays, sterilization procedures, impressions and assisting chairside are deeply reinforced. Concorde’s classes have just 12 students on average, allowing customized attention. The program culminates in a 160-hour externship featuring real-world mentored training in a dental office working alongside seasoned assistants and clinicians [3].
Grads have given Concorde stellar reviews, with 95% recommending the program. Alum Brittany Harris shares: "The most beneficial part was the hands-on experience. By the time I started working as a dental assistant, I already felt comfortable in the setting and with the responsibilities." Concorde also offers strong job search guidance. The college actively partners with over 500 healthcare employers to facilitate graduate placement through employment events, networking and one-on-one counseling.
Remington College Memphis Campus
Those seeking an accredited degree can pursue Remington College‘s Associate of Applied Science in Dental Assisting track. This 21-month pathway scaffolds foundational concepts like oral anatomy and infection prevention before advancing to specialized procedures. Students split academics across 84 credit hours of didactic coursework and 400 hours logged in clinical practicum sessions [4]. Remington also prepares students for essential certifications like radiography (x-ray) licensure, coronal polishing and sealants training to boost marketability as dental assistants.
Recent alum Tasha Green recommends Remington‘s extensive hands-on dental lab simulations, sharing: "Practicing so many real-world scenarios on high-tech mannequins before going into actual clinics made the difference in being job ready. I felt fully confident in my skills as soon as I started assisting chairside thanks to those intensive labs." Tasha now works in oral surgery loving the fast-paced environment and opportunity to expand her capabilities.
Accelerated Dental Assisting Academy (ADAA)
Based in nearby Olive Branch, MS, ADAA concentrates rigorous training into just 11 Saturdays in a part-time format designed around adult and working learners. Students still receive completely comprehensive preparation across dental assisting fundamentals, radiography, lab techniques, clinical skills and administrative areas through a concentrated curriculum [5]. With modules led by licensed dentists and assistants through focused hands-on instruction, minimal lecture hours and classes capped at just 10 students, graduates gain tangible real-world abilities quickly.
Many ADAA alumni like Wendy Cartagena land roles even before completing the program: "Within four weeks, I was hired part-time and then brought on full-time a month later thanks to already having so much hands-on experience with current tools and programs used in offices." The convenient weekend schedule also appeals to career-changers like parents rejoining the workforce.
Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Memphis
The TCAT Memphis Dental Assisting diploma program mixes scientific knowledge with technical skill development across a comprehensive 12-month curriculum. Through classroom and lab sessions, students become well-versed in dental sciences, infection control, materials, x-ray operation and workplace professionalism concepts before progressing to hands-on clinical training [6]. Students also complete a 180-hour supervised preceptorship within a professional dental setting to further hone abilities.
Alum Sade C. describes the intense curriculum as fully preparation, sharing "TCAT exposes students to every possible scenario – the good, bad and ugly – to ready you for anything you may encounter in a real-world office. So you feel equipped to handle the diverse responsibilities confidently at whatever practice you‘re placed." TCAT partners regionally with over 500 employers to facilitate graduate placement support.
Career Outlook for Dental Assistants in Thriving Memphis
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment for dental assistants nationally to swell 11% over the next decade, much faster than average across all occupations [7]. This growth trajectory aligns to Tennessee’s broader economic momentum. Given the more rapid population and business influx entering metro regions like Memphis specifically [8], local dental assistant job prospects look particularly bright.
As Mid-South residents require increased oral healthcare amid shortages of dentists and hygienists over this high-growth period, trained dental assistants become crucial extensions enabling more patient appointment availability and quality care outcomes. With so much demand growth against current graduating talent pipelines, new dental assistants in Memphis can expect:
- Average entry-level salary between $35,000 – $45,000, higher than national median income for dental assisting of $41,180 [9]
- Signing bonuses, reimbursement for certification expenses and other incentives from practices competing for talent
- Opportunity to land full-time roles faster with just 1-2 years experience
While most enter corporate, private or orthodontic practice settings immediately after completing their program, many assistants pursue specializations like hospital surgery assistance or pediatrics to increase income potential to over $55,000 yearly [9]. Extensive options to continue advancing your capabilities and salary exist in such a bustling local healthcare ecosystem.
Insider Perspectives from Successful Memphis Assistants
What better way to understand excelling as a dental assistant than hearing directly from those already thriving in local practices? We asked Memphis dental professionals at various career stages to share their insights:
Amber S., CDA – 5 Years Experience
"Getting comfortable with digital dental charting programs and clinical notation is key early on. So many assistants have amazing clinical skills with instruments and patient interactions but still struggle recording details accurately digitally in important patient files. Invest seriously in sharpening technology capabilities just as much."
Tyrone F., RDA – 15 Years Experience
"Never stop learning new techniques and equipment innovations. What was cutting edge 5 years ago is already outdated now with digital impression scanners, CAD/CAM milling, laser therapy. Be highly proactive about seeking continuing education opportunities at local academies or dental conventions to stay relevant."
Erica K., CDA, EFDA – 25 Years Experience
"Soft skills carry you much further long-term than clinical capabilities alone as an assistant. Learn how to genuinely connect with anxious patients, resolve insurance issues calmly, present treatment plans clearly. High emotional and communication intelligence build trust and loyalty keeping patients retained."
Vincent A., LDA, OMDA – 38 Years Experience
"Cultivate connections across the local dental community from early on in your career through associations like the Memphis Dental Society. The relationships with dentists, hygienists and fellow assistants provide a critical personalized referral system for career growth opportunities in Memphis’ tight-knit healthcare circle."
As Amber, Tyrone, Erica and Vincent’s stories show, blending compassionate patient care, administrative mastery and continuous skill development through a spirit of service are universal keys that unlock lasting success as a dental assistant in vibrant Memphis.
Laying the Memphis Foundation for a Bright Dental Career
As you’ve seen, dental assisting offers a compelling career pathway with immense promise in fast-expanding Memphis. Demand for support staff ensuring clinics operate efficiently and clinicians can provide accessible quality care continues rising significantly. Dental assistants become lynchpins connecting all these elements for sustainable practice success.
With rigorous preparation through the highly regarded diploma and degree programs available locally, Memphis provides no shortage of educational springboards to launch your rewarding dental assisting career on the right foot. Coupled with low cost of entry compared to roles like hygienists requiring 4 years university study, dental assisting offers relatively quick employment landscape entry with almost guaranteed job security based on large talent gaps.
By complementing scientific knowledge with technical capabilities, communication finesse and commitment to positive community impact, you’ll discover a dental assisting career touching and improving lives daily across Memphis.
Citation Sources:
[1] https://www.forbes.com/places/tn/memphis/[2] https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/money/business/development/2022/09/01/memphis-medical-district-challenges-solutions/7962929001/
[3] https://www.concorde.edu/campus/memphis-tennessee
[4] https://www.remingtoncollege.edu/campuses/memphis-dental-assistant-school/
[5] https://www.accelerateddentalassisting.com/
[6] https://tcatmemphis.edu/programs/dental-assistant
[7] https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dental-assistants.htm
[8] https://www.chamberedp.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Tennessee-Economic-Outlook-MID-2021-FINAL-UPDATED.pdf
[9] https://www1.salary.com/TN/Memphis/Dental-Assistant-Salary.html