Cross-Disciplinary Discussions During the workshop, attendees were divided into groups to discuss workforce challenges and propose actionable strategies to solve them. “Having representatives from the oral health professions come together to discuss these complex and challenging issues in an inclusive manner was very helpful,” says Dr. Astha Shah, health policy advisor and CDA scientific editor. “Our discussions were fruitful, and further enriched through hearing about the first-hand experiences of the dental professionals at the table. In my group, we talked about creating models based on needs for assessing workforce capacity issues. We also discussed the importance of collaboration among dental professionals, as well as working in tandem with experts in workforce planning to address these issues.” “It was interesting to learn more about what information we have, but also what we are missing when it comes to the oral health workforce in Canada,” says Dr. Diego Proaño, a PhD candidate in dental public health who works on special projects for CDA. “One of the takeaway messages is that we need good data so that we can plan for the future. These challenges aren’t new, and they can’t be fixed instantly, but gathering together and sharing the necessary data is an important first step.” According to internal surveys since 2019, about one-third of dental offices have unfilled dental assisting positions. On top of the most commonly cited issue of dental office work environments, dental assistants sometimes leave a practice for personal or family reasons or they are recruited by other dental practices. In 2023, one in 10 Canadians reported having a dental appointment canceled by the dental office over a 2-month period, which is indicative of the current dental staffing challenges. The demand for an increased oral health workforce seems to be more challenging in the Atlantic provinces. In particular, New Brunswick will face major challenges in the coming years with an increasing number of seniors retiring in that province. Dentists CDA’s presentations at the event explored the current oral health workforce data in Canada. Costa Papadopoulos, CDA’s principal health policy advisor, indicated that CDA represents about 21,000 practising dentists among the approximately 27,000 total dentists in Canada. For the 13,600 dental offices across the country, approximately one-third (37%) of offices have 1-2 employees. About 10% of dentists describe their type of practice as “corporate dentistry,” while others described their practices as a “partnership” or “solo-owned” entity. The gender distribution of dentists in Canada is changing, and the number of female dentists is increasing significantly, now approaching a 50-50 split. The number of new dentists increased until 2020, but has since experienced a decline, partly due to the pandemic. Dental Hygienists Ondina Love, executive director of CDHA, reported that they represent almost 23,000 members among the more than 31,000 total dental hygienists in Canada. The dental hygienist workforce is 97% female and, as a group, is aging slightly year over year. More than half (60%) of dental hygienists work full-time (defined as working more than 30 hrs/week), with a slight increase since 2015. Six percent of dental hygienists are business owners with the highest number of independent dental hygienists in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec. Close to 1 in 4 dental hygienists plan to leave the profession within the next five years. About 20% of dental hygienists leave the profession because they feel that they are not respected or valued. Data from a recent CDHA survey suggest that six in 10 dental hygienists have experienced or witnessed mistreatment. CDHA highlighted the impact of harassment, bullying, or abuse, in the oral health workplace. CDHA also mentioned how the ergonomic set-up in the workplace can have a negative impact on the number of work hours and can push some dental hygienists to consider quitting. Around 1,600 dental hygienists become registered yearly in Canada, according to CDHA data. We need good data so that we can plan for the future. These challenges aren’t new, and they can’t be fixed instantly, but gathering together and sharing the necessary data is an important first step. About one-third of dental offices have unfilled dental assisting positions. On top of the most commonly cited issue, dental assistants leave a practice for personal or family reasons or they are recruited by other dental practices. 25 Issue 5 | 2024 |
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTE5MTI=