Work with highly qualified people and latest technology in this exciting role that could take you just about anywhere in Australia.

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1 CALL defencejobs.gov.au/airforce/jobs/dentalassistant Document generated on Saturday, 2 July 2016 at 8:51:34 PM Dental Assistant Work with highly qualified people and latest technology in this exciting role that could take you just about anywhere in Australia. Additional Information WHAT YOU COULD EARN In the Air Force you'll receive a competitive salary, generous Super and an excellent range of benefits. You get paid from the day you start training and your salary will increase with rank and experience. DENTAL ASSISTANTS can earn over $60,600 p.a. on completion of initial employment training. This figure includes Uniform and Service allowances and applies to full time General entry. Job Details Dental Assistants are an important member of the Air Force health care team. They support RAAF and Civilian Dental Officers and Dental Hygienists working for the ADF to provide high quality treatment. They are employed in dental chairside support roles, assisting for dental treatment under general anaesthesia and conscious sedation, oral health education, practice administration and other health support duties. They may be required on occasion to undertake these duties with portable dental equipment either within Australia or overseas. Generally, a Dental Assistant will be classified as a non-combatant role and will be a protected person under international law when performing these duties on operations. RAAF Dental Assistants are usually the first point of contact for a patient seeking dental treatment and are therefore, required to have well developed interpersonal skills and good verbal communication. Many written documents from the patient clinical record will need to be checked for accuracy and completeness and as such, excellent skills with reading and writing English are also required. RAAF Dental Assistants are required to follow stringent infection control protocols in order to maintain a safe working environment and patient care. Their duties include: Configuring, preparing and maintaining the dental operatory for patient care; Preparing and maintaining patient clinical records, appointments and administrative documents;

2 Chairside dental assisting for general dentists and dental specialists, and dental hygienists; Cleaning, reprocessing and sterilising instruments and equipment; Processing dental radiographs; Assisting with general logistics and administrative duties. Work conditions Dental Assistants normally work in environmentally controlled health facilities. Dental Assistants may be required to work in a deployed field dental unit where environmental conditions may be more arduous. Dental Assistants are potentially exposed to occupational noise, infectious and hazardous substances, ionising radiation and hazardous equipment on a daily basis. Dental Assistants are considered to be occupationally exposed radiation workers and are required to wear a personal radiation monitor when performing clinical duties. Through training, personal compliance with defined procedures and use of the supplied protective equipment, these risks are controlled. At times, the clinical work environment may be such that it may not be possible to take a break without affecting a clinical procedure in progress. On occasion, long periods standing may be required. Usually, this is not the case but at times is unavoidable. Entry General Entry (Non-Technical Trainee) is the term used to describe the large number of non-technical jobs available to people entering the Air Force as airmen (non-officer entry) and for which training is provided. Each trade in the Air Force is referred to as a mustering; for example, the Cook trade is a mustering. General Entry (Non-Technical Trainee) Airmen graduate from recruit training with the rank of Aircraftman/Aircraftwoman and generally progress to leading Aircraftman/Leading Aircraftwoman after 12 months productive service following completion of initial employment training and successful completion of workplace competencies. Further promotion to Corporal, Sergeant, Flight Sergeant and Warrant Officer is based on performance, time in rank, vacancies and the successful completion of promotion courses. Corporals are referred to as Non-Commissioned Officers, or NCOs, while Sergeants and Flight Sergeants are called Senior Non-Commissioned Officers (SNCOs). Warrant Officer is the most senior airman rank. A Corporal will normally have some responsibility for the supervision of junior staff and this progressively increases on promotion to Sergeant and Flight Sergeant. A Warrant Officer normally has a substantial personnel management role. The Air Force has a system whereby serving airmen may, in certain circumstances, be appointed as officers. The prerequisites vary depending on your mustering, the preferred officer specialisation, your rank, performance history and a number of other factors. Pay & Allowances Salary while undertaking Military (Recruit) Training: $1,379 per fortnight ($35,854 per year).* Salary while undertaking Initial Employment Training: $1,576 per fortnight ($40,976 per year).* While under training, you will also receive $387 per fortnight ($10,086 per year pro rata) Trainee Allowance. Salary (excluding allowances) on completion of Initial Employment Training: $1,847 per fortnight ($48029 per year).* In addition to your salary, you will receive Service Allowance of $517 per fortnight ($13,448 per year) except while undertaking Military (Initial) or Employment training. This allowance compensates a member for the unique requirements that service life may impose on an individual and his or her family. To assist you in maintaining your uniforms in good order and condition, you will also receive a Uniform Allowance of $16 per fortnight ($419 per year).

3 Each General Entry job in the Australian Defence Force is classified into a pay grade. This particular job commences at Pay Grade 2 on completion of Initial Employment Training. Salary will continue to increase based on rank and the number of years of service completed in that rank. Pay Grade may also increase following the acquisition of additional skills and completion of advanced courses. Refer to the Salary Scales for further details. * Note: These figures do not include compulsory deductions for taxation; meals, accommodation and utilities (as applicable); and superannuation. General Requirements Age Requirement Must be aged between 17 and 56 years inclusive on day of entry. Applicants will not normally be allowed to enter the ADF until they achieve a minimum of 17 years of age, however they may be able to initiate the application process from 16 years and six months of age, depending upon the capacity of their local recruiting centre. Citizenship Requirement Only Australian citizens are permitted to serve in the ADF. If you are a Permanent Resident of Australia, the ADF may consider a temporary waiver of the citizenship requirement if the position for which you are applying cannot be filled by an applicant who meets all the citizenship requirements, and then only in exceptional circumstances. You will be required to obtain Australian citizenship as early as possible following enlistment or appointment. Find out more in our Recruitment Centre or ask your local Defence Force Recruiting Centre. Security Requirement The Department of Defence requires ADF entrants to attain a security clearance appropriate to their avenue of entry. A process of background checks, collection of relevant information and, as required, interviews enables the Regional Security Office to make an informed assessment of an applicant's suitability for a security clearance Current policy requires applicants for this particular avenue of entry to have lived in Australia for the preceding 10 years, or have a checkable background for this period. Aptitude Requirement The application process to join the Australian Defence Force requires you to complete a series of aptitude tests including verbal, spatial and numerical ability and a general maths test. Some jobs may also require you to complete additional

4 testing at a later date. Psychology support staff will explain what is involved with each test. The aptitude tests provide information about your suitability for the Defence Force and for particular jobs. Defence Force Recruiting can then help you identify jobs that best match your abilities. Further information on the aptitude testing requirements can be found here. Education & Experience It is essential that the applicant has completed Year 10 with passes in English and Mathematics. It is desirable that the applicant has achieved a pass in Science at Year 10 level, or If you do not satisfy the education requirements for this trade or do not possess evidence of your educational attainment there is an alternative pathway available to you. You may be eligible to sit an Alternative Education Equivalency (AEE) Assessment to ascertain your ability at the required educational level for this trade. Further information is available here. Medical & Fitness Requirements To be enlisted or appointed, you must be medically and physically fit for entry to your chosen occupation. This is partially assessed from the completion of an extensive questionnaire covering your medical history, followed by a physical examination. You will also be required to successfully pass a physical fitness test before enlistment. For further details on medical and physical fitness standards refer to Physical Fitness Standards for Entry into the ADF and Medical Process for Entry into the ADF. Period of Service You will be enlisted for an Initial Minimum Period of Service (IMPS) of one year. Subsequent periods of service may be offered subject to the requirements of the ADF and your suitability for further service. You may request discharge at any time provided you do not have an outstanding Initial Minimum Period of Service obligation and provide a minimum of three months notice. Military Training Duration: 12.6 weeks Location: RAAF Base Wagga (NSW) No 1 Recruit Training Unit (1RTU) conducts initial recruit training for Airmen and Airwomen. The 12 week and six day recruit course is an intensive period of learning and adjustment to a military lifestyle. The aims of the course are to: provide an orderly transition from civilian to Air Force life; equip the recruit with the basic knowledge, skills and physical fitness to

5 perform future roles in the Air Force; and instil in the recruit the motivation to become a dedicated and productive Air Force member. For more details on recruit training, refer to the Joining instructions. These instructions will provide you and your family with enough information to arrange your personal affairs before enlistment in the Air Force, and give you an idea of what you will be doing on the recruit course. Further details on recruit training are also available on the 1RTU website. Upon graduation, most Airmen and Airwomen undertake specialist employment training before moving on to full employment in their chosen mustering in the Air Force. During Military (Initial Recruit) Training and (Initial) Employment Training, members may be required to pay a contribution towards meals, accommodation and utilities. Employment Training Dental Assistant Course - 11 Weeks Trainees from the Air Force, Navy and Army undergo a 11 week Tri-Service Dental Assistant Course in Victoria at HMAS CERBERUS. The course provides instruction in relevant biology, operation procedures, laboratory procedures, workplace health and safety and military dental administration. At the conclusion of this course, they will be classified as a Dental Assistant Grade 1. Further Training Dental Assistants will be offered the opportunity to undertake the Senior Dental Assistant Course which further develops their skills and qualifies them to take radiographs on the prescription of a Dentist, assist with procedures under general anaesthesia or conscious sedation, and for selected oral health promotion and education tasks. Following completion of this training, they will be reclassified as Dental Assistant Grade 2. Senior Dental Assistants may be offered the opportunity to undertake a demanding course of training over a 21 week intensive program conducted at HMAS CERBERUS leading to remuster as Senior Dental Assistant Preventive (SDAP). This is a military unique skill and does not lead to the award of a civilian qualification. The duties of the Senior Dental Assistant Preventive is to provide limited preventive oral healthcare services within a military defined scope of practice on healthy adult military personnel on the prescription of a military dental officer and under the indirect supervision of a military dental officer. Further development at the rank of Sergeant and above will be into supervisory and managerial roles where skills in management, finance, training, work health and safety and quality assurance skills become more highly developed. Employment Location You may be posted to any Air Force Base within Australia, with some opportunity for overseas deployment. National Qualifications On completion of the initial employment training and associated Competency Task Journal, graduants are awarded a nationally recognised Certificate III in Dental Assisting. Dental Assistants who complete the Senior Dental Assistant course and associated Competency Task Journal are awarded a Certificate IV in Dental Assisting which includes the electives for dental radiography and also for assisting during general anaesthesia and conscious sedation.

6 Senior Dental Assistants may undertake the Dental Supervisor course which contributes to career development and workplace duties at a more senior level within the military. Dental Supervisors may undertake the Dental Manager course which contributes to career development and workplace duties at a more senior level within the military. Further specific training will be provided for particular positions to which individuals may be posted. Defence Force Recruiting disseminates information free of charge for the benefit of the public. Defence Force Recruiting monitors the quality of the information available on this website and updates the information regularly. However, Defence Force Recruiting gives no express or implied warranties, and makes no representations, in relation to this website or the accuracy, reliability, currency or completeness of any material contained on this website or on any linked site. For more information see