First, we need to understand the dental profession.
In the 1960s Dentists moved from working in a standing position to working in a sitting position. This gave Dentists a false sense of security as it related to their physical health as it was assumed that moving from the standing position would eliminate all the pain and discomfort they were experiencing. The focus on the dental profession then turned more toward patient comfort and pain control and the physical stress on the dental worker was put on "the back burner." "Extreme Makeover" Dentistry requires longer appointments thus longer time spent in potentially poor posture positions.
To help understand the dental profession, picture yourself the last time you were a patient in a dental office. Individualization of each office and its processes makes it challenging to come up with standardization that fits the profession, but there are general guidelines for office design, equipment, instruments, and positioning of dental team members.
Let's review the job tasks – the description is simplified:
The dentist's job tasks include use of a dental hand mirror in non-dominant hand and a dental instrument or handpiece in the dominant hand. They are working in a dark, wet mouth, so the use of overhead lighting and visual magnification is usually necessary. The dentist tends to maneuver his/her body to see into the mouth or using a mirror and getting into awkward neck, back, and arm positions.
The Dental Assistant sits on a stool slightly higher than the dentist to allow visualization of the whole work area. Generally, the assistant sits parallel to the patient chair and rotates her body to provide suction, transfer instruments, handpieces, and other dental materials to the dentist.
The Dental Hygienist usually works alone, therefore, reaching for her own instruments and supplies while performing repetitive, resistive tasks with a dental instrument while she cleans and scales teeth.
The Dental Receptionist works at a workstation and uses the telephone and computer much of the day.
Dental offices usually have a productivity goal for each dental team member, which places stress and infrequent rest periods into the mix.
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