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Orthodontists

Examine, diagnose, and treat dental malocclusions and oral cavity anomalies. Design and fabricate appliances to realign teeth and jaws to produce and maintain normal function and to improve appearance.
  • Summary

  • Details

  • Work Activities

    • Diagnose teeth and jaw or other dental-facial abnormalities.
    • Advise patients to comply with treatment plans.
    • Coordinate orthodontic services with other dental and medical services.
    • Examine patients to assess abnormalities of jaw development, tooth position, and other dental-facial structures.
    • Study diagnostic records, such as medical or dental histories, plaster models of the teeth, photos of a patient's face and teeth, and X-rays, to develop patient treatment plans.
    • Prepare diagnostic and treatment records.
    • Instruct dental officers and technical assistants in orthodontic procedures and techniques.
    • Advise patients to comply with treatment plans.
    • Design and fabricate appliances, such as space maintainers, retainers, and labial and lingual arch wires.
    • Design and fabricate appliances, such as space maintainers, retainers, and labial and lingual arch wires.
    • Provide patients with proposed treatment plans and cost estimates.
    • Fit dental appliances in patients' mouths to alter the position and relationship of teeth and jaws or to realign teeth.
    • Adjust dental appliances to produce and maintain normal function.

    Skills

    • Troubleshooting
      • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
    • Repairing
      • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
    • Learning Strategies
      • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
    • Negotiation
      • Bringing people together to solve differences.
    • Technology Design
      • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
    • Operations Analysis
      • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
    • Complex Problem Solving
      • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
    • Persuasion
      • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
    • Service Orientation
      • Looking for ways to help people.
    • Mathematics
      • Using math to solve problems.
    • Science
      • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
    • Installation
      • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
    • Management of Material Resources
      • Managing equipment and materials.
    • Management of Personnel Resources
      • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
    • Time Management
      • Managing your time and the time of other people.
    • Management of Financial Resources
      • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
    • Critical Thinking
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
    • Instructing
      • Teaching people how to do something.
    • Social Perceptiveness
      • Understanding people's reactions.
    • Reading Comprehension
      • Reading work-related information.
    • Speaking
      • Talking to others.
    • Judgment and Decision Making
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
    • Systems Evaluation
      • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
    • Operation and Control
      • Using equipment or systems.
    • Active Learning
      • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
    • Operations Monitoring
      • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
    • Programming
      • Writing computer programs.
    • Systems Analysis
      • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
    • Quality Control Analysis
      • Testing how well a product or service works.
    • Equipment Maintenance
      • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
    • Equipment Selection
      • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
    • Monitoring
      • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
    • Coordination
      • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
    • Writing
      • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
    • Active Listening
      • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    Abilities

    • Information Ordering
      • Ordering or arranging things.
    • Category Flexibility
      • Grouping things in different ways.
    • Dynamic Flexibility
      • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Peripheral Vision
      • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
    • Selective Attention
      • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
    • Gross Body Coordination
      • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
    • Written Comprehension
      • Reading and understanding what is written.
    • Originality
      • Creating new and original ideas.
    • Flexibility of Closure
      • Seeing hidden patterns.
    • Problem Sensitivity
      • Noticing when problems happen.
    • Speed of Closure
      • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
    • Inductive Reasoning
      • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
    • Glare Sensitivity
      • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
    • Visual Color Discrimination
      • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
    • Dynamic Strength
      • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
    • Speech Recognition
      • Recognizing spoken words.
    • Deductive Reasoning
      • Using rules to solve problems.
    • Memorization
      • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
    • Number Facility
      • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
    • Rate Control
      • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
    • Time Sharing
      • Doing two or more things at the same time.
    • Explosive Strength
      • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
    • Manual Dexterity
      • Holding or moving items with your hands.
    • Finger Dexterity
      • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
    • Sound Localization
      • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
    • Multilimb Coordination
      • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
    • Wrist-Finger Speed
      • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
    • Extent Flexibility
      • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Hearing Sensitivity
      • Telling the difference between sounds.
    • Oral Expression
      • Communicating by speaking.
    • Fluency of Ideas
      • Coming up with lots of ideas.
    • Oral Comprehension
      • Listening and understanding what people say.
    • Spatial Orientation
      • Knowing where things are around you.
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
      • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
    • Trunk Strength
      • Using your lower back and stomach.
    • Far Vision
      • Seeing details that are far away.
    • Auditory Attention
      • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
    • Perceptual Speed
      • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
    • Response Orientation
      • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
    • Gross Body Equilibrium
      • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
    • Control Precision
      • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
    • Reaction Time
      • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
    • Stamina
      • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
    • Static Strength
      • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
    • Depth Perception
      • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
    • Night Vision
      • Seeing at night or under low light.
    • Speech Clarity
      • Speaking clearly.
    • Mathematical Reasoning
      • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
    • Visualization
      • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
    • Speed of Limb Movement
      • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
    • Near Vision
      • Seeing details up close.
    • Written Expression
      • Communicating by writing.

    Knowledge

    • Building and Construction
      • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
    • History and Archeology
      • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
    • Engineering and Technology
      • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
    • Communications and Media
      • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
    • Fine Arts
      • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
    • Computers and Electronics
      • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
    • English Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
    • Sociology and Anthropology
      • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
    • Chemistry
      • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
    • Law and Government
      • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
    • Customer and Personal Service
      • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
    • Psychology
      • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
    • Sales and Marketing
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
    • Biology
      • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
    • Physics
      • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
    • Mechanical
      • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
    • Mathematics
      • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
    • Geography
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
    • Administrative
      • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
    • Telecommunications
      • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
    • Design
      • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
    • Transportation
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
    • Personnel and Human Resources
      • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
    • Philosophy and Theology
      • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
    • Economics and Accounting
      • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
    • Production and Processing
      • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
    • Food Production
      • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
    • Foreign Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
    • Therapy and Counseling
      • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
    • Education and Training
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
    • Medicine and Dentistry
      • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
    • Public Safety and Security
      • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
    • Administration and Management
      • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    Education

    Education
    Doctoral or professional degree
    Work Experience
    No work experience
    Training
    Internship/residency

    Pay

    Washington Annual Salary
    239,200+/yr
    Washington Hourly Wage
    115+/hr

    Washington Employment Trends

    Currently Employed
    100
    Yearly Projected Openings
    10

    Personality

    Investigative: People interested in this work like activities that include ideas, thinking, and figuring things out. They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Integrity
    • Concern for Others
    • Independence
    • Cooperation

    Tools

    • Chemical or gas sterilizers
    • Cosmetic dentistry curing lights
    • Dental files or rasps
    • Dental mirrors or mirror handles
    • Dental mouth prop or bite block or gag
    • Dental placement instruments
    • Dental probes or explorers
    • Dental retractors
    • Dental scalers
    • Dental scissors
    • Dental tweezers
    • Dental x ray units
    • Desktop computers
    • Digital cameras
    • Dry heat or hot air sterilizers
    • Medical computed tomography CT or CAT scanners or tubes
    • Micrometers
    • Notebook computers
    • Orthodontic band drivers or pushers or setters
    • Orthodontic pliers
    • Personal computers
    • Safety glasses
    • Scanners
    • Steam autoclaves or sterilizers
    • Surgical gloves
    • Surgical isolation or surgical masks
    • Tablet computers
    • Ultrasonic cleaning equipment

    Technology

    • Calendar and scheduling software
    • Development environment software
    • Graphics or photo imaging software
    • Internet browser software
    • Medical software
    • Office suite software
    • Web page creation and editing software