Course Summary

In a sedation emergency, seconds decide the outcome. This one-day, 7-hour course gives Washington dentists who provide nitrous oxide, minimal, or moderate oral sedation the clinical judgment and hands-on airway skills to recognize trouble early and rescue fast.

Dentists usually find themselves torn with what literature says, what real disciplinary and malpractice cases show, and what actually happens in a busy dental office. You will learn how to select the right patients, dose and monitor safely, catch the warning signs before it’s too late, and lead your team when something goes wrong.

The last 90 minutes of the day are hands-on: an airway skills workshop followed by a timed sedation emergency simulation. The hands-on work focuses on the first 90 seconds of an airway problem, the most critical window before more serious emergencies arise.

The course is built around Washington’s dental sedation rules (chapter 246-817 WAC) and the sedation continuing education requirements in WAC 246-817-773.

Who Should Attend?

• Dentists who provide nitrous oxide or minimal sedation (i.e. triazolam)
• Dentists who hold a moderate sedation with enteral (oral) agents permit
• Dentists with a moderate sedation with parenteral (IV) agents permit who need hours toward their 14-hour requirement
• Dentists who sedate older or medically complex patients
• Any sedation provider who wants practical, real-world training focused on patient safety

Course Highlights

• 7 sedation CE hours designed around Washington’s WAC 246-817-773 requirements
• Taught by two nurse anesthesiologists (CRNAs) who have provided anesthesia in more than 250 Washington dental offices
• Small class, real practice: limited seats and two instructors, so every participant gets time on the manikins
• Hands-on airway workshop on a high-fidelity airway manikin and a ventilation-feedback manikin
• Timed emergency simulation with a live simulated patient monitor
• Real case reviews from dental board actions and lawsuits: what went wrong, what the record showed, and what would have changed the outcome
• Practical takeaways you can bring back to your team the next day you sedate

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

1. Describe Washington’s requirements for nitrous oxide, minimal, and moderate sedation, including monitoring, emergency equipment, staffing, records, and sedation CE.
2. Evaluate a patient for office-based sedation using ASA physical status, airway assessment, and medical-history red flags, and recognize when to modify the plan or refer.
3. Explain the onset, peak effect, duration, and key drug interactions of commonly used oral sedatives, and why an oral dose can carry a patient deeper than intended.
4. Compare FDA-labeled dosing with real-world dental practice and identify the risks of redosing and combining sedatives.
5. Interpret pulse oximetry and capnography to recognize hypoventilation before emergencies arise.
6. Apply a stepwise airway rescue sequence, recognize ineffective ventilation within seconds, and escalate without delay.
7. Demonstrate airway adjunct selection (nasal vs. oral airway) and proper bag-mask ventilation on a manikin.
8. Lead a sedation emergency in the dental office.
9. Apply discharge criteria and document informed consent, the sedation record, and recovery in a way that holds up to Dental Commission review.

Your Day at a Glance

Event Details