As a nursing student, you have a wide range of fields to specialise in. These specialisations are purely based on what you’re passionate about and the career you want to pursue. So, one of these specialisations also includes dental nursing. This article is intended to provide all the information on becoming a dental nurse in the UK in 2023. We will go over dental nursing qualifications, the roles of a dental nurse, and dental assistant salaries in the UK! Let’s get started.
What Is A Dental Nurse?
Dental nurses, as the name suggests, are healthcare professionals assisting dentists in providing dental care to patients. The responsibilities of a dental nurse are based on supporting all members of the dental team to provide the best dental care to the patients. We will go over the duties of a dental nurse in detail in the next section.
Roles Of A Dental Nurse
As we said earlier, being a dental nurse would require you to support the various operations related to patient care, as well as the entire dental team. The NHS has provided a list of the various duties of a dental nurse; take a look:
- Supporting and reassuring patients
- Supervising the sterilisation and decontamination of dental equipment.
- Ensuring that the dental supplies are stocked
- Maintaining and securing patient records
- Assisting the dentist with any requests or procedures.
- Ensuring that high standards of cleanliness and infection control are practised
So, these are the basic roles of a dental nurse that are going to be expected of you! By now, you must have an idea of whether or not being a dental nurse is the right career path for you. Let’s look into some dental nursing qualifications!
Dental Nurse Qualifications!
To start as a trainee dental nurse, you don’t need academic qualifications! That is good news for people who are passionate about nursing but don’t possess the right qualifications and experience to become one.
You can start working as a dental nurse trainee without any qualifications, but you have to work towards becoming a qualified dental nurse in order to advance your career. Dental nursing courses can be studied part-time or full-time, depending on your preference.
Additionally, the NHS has provided a list of skills that you need to possess in order to qualify for dental nurse training. Take a look:
- Discretion, as you’ll be handling confidential patient records
- A caring attitude to comfort anxious patients
- A team player
- Willing to learn the science behind dentistry work
- A friendly personality
- Willing to offer advice and educate patients
Apart from these skills, you need to be able to listen carefully to the dentist’s instructions and follow them precisely. Your job is to provide assistance, and your dentist should be able to rely on you.
Salary and Benefits
Working as an employee under the NHS has decent benefits and standardised pay. For starters, you will be working 37.5 hours a week; this may include working in the evenings, depending on the hours of the dentist’s office.
Dental nurses start at band 3 or band 4 of the AfC (Agenda for Change) pay system, depending on their qualifications. If you are a senior dental nurse, you can expect to start at band 5 or higher.
Hopefully, we have provided you with all the information you need on becoming a dental nurse in the UK. This article was intended to answer the question of how to become a dental nurse in 2023. If you’re looking for the right dental nurse job for you, Primus Recruitment is the perfect solution! We have over five years of experience in helping candidates find their ideal jobs. Get in touch with us and hire the best healthcare recruiters in the UK!
