Current through Reg. 49, No. 12; March 22, 2024
(a) A dentist may
delegate to a dental assistant the authority to perform only acts or procedures
that are reversible. An act or procedure that is reversible is capable of being
reversed or corrected.
(b) A
dentist may not delegate or otherwise authorize a dental assistant to perform
any task for which a certificate or additional training is required under this
section, unless the dental assistant holds the required certificate or has
obtained the additional training.
(c) A dental assistant may perform tasks
under a dentist's general or direct supervision. For the purposes of this
section:
(1) "General supervision" means that
the dentist employs or is in charge of the dental assistant and is responsible
for supervising the services to be performed by the dental assistant. The
dentist may or may not be present on the premises when the dental assistant
performs the procedures.
(2)
"Direct supervision" means that the dentist employs or is in charge of the
dental assistant and is physically present in the office when the task is
performed. Physical presence does not require that the supervising dentist be
in the treatment room when the dental assistant performs the service as long as
the dentist is in the dental office.
(d) The dentist shall remain responsible for
any delegated act.
(e) The clinical
tasks that a dental assistant can perform under general supervision are limited
to:
(1) the making of dental x-rays in
compliance with the Occupations Code, §
265.001;
and
(2) the provision of interim
treatment of a minor emergency dental condition to an existing patient of the
treating dentist in accordance with the Occupations Code, §
265.003(a-1).
For purposes of this paragraph only, "existing patient" means a patient that
the supervising dentist has examined in the twelve (12) months prior to the
interim treatment. A treating dentist who delegates the provision of interim
treatment of a minor emergency condition to a dental assistant shall schedule a
follow-up appointment with the patient within 30 days. It is not a violation if
the dentist makes a good faith attempt to schedule a follow-up appointment with
the patient within 30 days but is unable to because of circumstances outside
the dentist's control and those circumstances are clearly noted in the
patient's record.
