I have been a certified dental assistant for 4 years now.  I have seen many assistants come and go with different levels of education.  I have seen assistants that were trained on the job, assistants that had completed an unaccredited 4 month dental program, and I have also worked with certifed dental assistants.  My observations concluded that the assistants that did not have an infection control requirement, did not grasp the importance of infection control.    Infection control is more than just wiping down a chair with cavicide.  Infection control is a very serious part of any dental office and if the assistants don't fully understand the importance of it, things will not be done properly and patients/ other employees will get hurt.  Knowing proper knowledge about sterilization and disinfection is crucial for an assistant to be educated in.  Becoming a certifed dental assistant gave me the knowledge that I needed to fully understand many things about dentistry, but most importantly infection control.