Best Dental Specialties in a Recession

[KSDental]

Since dentistry is more recession prone than a lot of other healthcare professions, I thought it would be useful to determine which specialties are most resistant to changes in the economy. Here is how I would rank them:
1. OMFS
2. General Practice
3. Pediatric Dentistry
4. Oral Pathology
5. Endodontics
6. Prosthodontics
7. Periodontics
8. Oral Radiology
9. Orthodontics

​

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[mr24]

I would put pedo first. most descent parents will put their kids dental needs before a lot of other stuff.

 

[yappy]

I'm not a dentist; however, I've noted through convo's with dentists that when times are hard dentists try to not refer things out. This seems logical to me because if you're a GP and have more patients than time you will cherry pick the "good" patients and refer out the complicated-time-consuming patients. However, if you have more time than patients this trend may flip.


It seems like this would effect perio, OS (3rd's) and endo the most.

Again, I'm no dentist.

 

[dentalWorks]

recession proof? Its hard to determine this... there are SOO many factors which come into play: location, patient pool, competition, business common sense, did I mention location? (yeh its that important)

 

[UCSD6]

I'll take a stab at it.

1.OMFS, scope of practice is large. T & T is great for profits. Don't think many general dentists are hesitant to refer out complex cases to the OS

2. Pedo, parents usually put their kids infront of themselves, "nuff said."

3.Endo, although many dentist will try to do endo on their own, there's still plenty to go around. This is the highest paid specialty per hour, the only exception may be OMFS. Good thing about endo is the patient is likely in pain and wants to be taken out of it, so economy probably not a huge factor

4. General Dentistry. The jack of all traits, master of none. If just starting out in a bad economy, u will be hit hard, but if your patient base is large and you have been in the game for a long time in an area where people consistently work you will be successful in a down economy. Timing is key for the GP

5. Perio, the lock on the implant game has them capable of producing big money, but in a bad economy, people probably dont want to shell this type of money out. Competition between GP and Perio is high.

6. Prostho, some say its a glorified GP, I say that mostly everything a Prostho does a GP can do. So, yea probably dont get enough referrals.

7. Ortho, the public views ortho as the ultimate cosmetic procedure, ortho gets hit super hard in a rough economy, most people done want to shell out +4K for an elective procedure, when there wallets are hurting. Most orthos I know have got hit super hard, even though they have been established for many years.

8. Oral pathology/ Oral Radiology, are these even considered specialties by the ADA? Don't really know anything about them, never met one, so I will assume that u either are hired by a hospital or work in academia, so could be pretty very stable career, regardless of the economy.

What do u guys think?

 

[kennypowers]

Wrong logic. There is way too much focus on specialties on SDN. Economies always fluctuate. If you determine a specialty based on a current economy, you've missed the point.

Success in dentistry requires a combination of clinical expertise and business acumen. The business acumen side is undervalued far too often.

Instead of focusing on the specialty, focus on the business model. A well-run practice with healthy balance sheets will do well in a recession or a boom, whether it be ortho, perio, OMFS, GP, etc.

Minimize overhead, live below your means and practice what you are good at and what you enjoy.

As Warren Buffet once said, "You never know who is swimming naked until the tide goes out." Just make sure that whatever you practice, you aren't swimming naked. I guarantee you that if you do that, you will earn enough money to enjoy life no matter your specialty.

 

[yappy]

What you say is true; however, when we're discussing a recession we're really talking about decreased demand. Therefore, I think the OP is asking which speciality+GP will be least effected when general consumer demand decreases due to underemployment, unemployment, inflation etc.

A good business plan is essential but if you're selling walkmans in the age if digital tech you're screwed. This is an extreme example but you get where I'm coming from.

Wrong logic. There is way too much focus on specialties on SDN. Economies always fluctuate. If you determine a specialty based on a current economy, you've missed the point.

Success in dentistry requires a combination of clinical expertise and business acumen. The business acumen side is undervalued far too often.

Instead of focusing on the specialty, focus on the business model. A well-run practice with healthy balance sheets will do well in a recession or a boom, whether it be ortho, perio, OMFS, GP, etc.

Minimize overhead, live below your means and practice what you are good at and what you enjoy.

As Warren Buffet once said, "You never know who is swimming naked until the tide goes out." Just make sure that whatever you practice, you aren't swimming naked. I guarantee you that if you do that, you will earn enough money to enjoy life no matter your specialty.

 

[dentalWorks]

What you say is true; however, when we're discussing a recession we're really talking about decreased demand. Therefore, I think the OP is asking which speciality+GP will be least effected when general consumer demand decreases due to underemployment, unemployment, inflation etc.

A good business plan is essential but if you're selling walkmans in the age if digital tech you're screwed. This is an extreme example but you get where I'm coming from.

well.... hypothetically, if we are ONLY looking at those factors, then GPs will be making a killing while OMFS / ortho / any other "high cost" specialty will be struggling (financially)

think about it, do you have 2-3k to spend on braces? implants? root canal? OR... do you have $80 for a 15-minute extraction?

 

[Machiavelliansm]

Wrong logic. There is way too much focus on specialties on SDN. Economies always fluctuate. If you determine a specialty based on a current economy, you've missed the point.

Success in dentistry requires a combination of clinical expertise and business acumen. The business acumen side is undervalued far too often.

Instead of focusing on the specialty, focus on the business model. A well-run practice with healthy balance sheets will do well in a recession or a boom, whether it be ortho, perio, OMFS, GP, etc.

Minimize overhead, live below your means and practice what you are good at and what you enjoy.

As Warren Buffet once said, "You never know who is swimming naked until the tide goes out." Just make sure that whatever you practice, you aren't swimming naked. I guarantee you that if you do that, you will earn enough money to enjoy life no matter your specialty.

soooooo......which one?

 

[mr24]

well.... hypothetically, if we are ONLY looking at those factors, then GPs will be making a killing while OMFS / ortho / any other "high cost" specialty will be struggling (financially)

think about it, do you have 2-3k to spend on braces? implants? root canal? OR... do you have $80 for a 15-minute extraction?

id get a credit card and save my tooth!!!

 

[charlestweed]

5. Perio, the lock on the implant game has them capable of producing big money, but in a bad economy, people probably dont want to shell this type of money out. Competition between GP and Perio is high.

Patients will get implants if you make the fee more affordable for them….ie collect half the amount for the implant placement and collect the other half at the second stage surgery appointment. Many doctors are very firm and require the whole amount be paid up front.

7. Ortho, the public views ortho as the ultimate cosmetic procedure, ortho gets hit super hard in a rough economy, most people done want to shell out +4K for an elective procedure, when there wallets are hurting. Most orthos I know have got hit super hard, even though they have been established for many years.

Just wait until you have kids, then you will realize how important it is for your children to have straight teeth and beautiful smile. Every parent wants their kids to look good and feel good about themselves. Many parents put aside a budget for braces so that their kids’ ortho treatments can be completed before high school or before the senior pictures are taken.

You right! $4-5k per ortho case is a lot of money especially when the parents have 2-3 kids who need braces (last week, I started 3 siblings who all have impacted canines problem). Ortho treatments are actually more affordable than other dental treatments because ortho payments are usually spread over the 24-30 month period. It is a lot easier to sell ortho cases than to sell other expensive dental procedures such as 3rd molar extractions and dental implants.

This poor economy hurts my production a little bit but it is not too bad. The poor economy is not the biggest threat. The biggest threat to our ortho profession is the opening of new ortho programs and new dental schools.

 

[GatorDDS]

Patients will get implants if you make the fee more affordable for them….ie collect half the amount for the implant placement and collect the other half at the second stage surgery appointment. Many doctors are very firm and require the whole amount be paid up front.


Just wait until you have kids, then you will realize how important it is for your children to have straight teeth and beautiful smile. Every parent wants their kids to look good and feel good about themselves. Many parents put aside a budget for braces so that their kids' ortho treatments can be completed before high school or before the senior pictures are taken.

You right! $4-5k per ortho case is a lot of money especially when the parents have 2-3 kids who need braces (last week, I started 3 siblings who all have impacted canines problem). Ortho treatments are actually more affordable than other dental treatments because ortho payments are usually spread over the 24-30 month period. It is a lot easier to sell ortho cases than to sell other expensive dental procedures such as 3rd molar extractions and dental implants.

This poor economy hurts my production a little bit but it is not too bad. The poor economy is not the biggest threat. The biggest threat to our ortho profession is the opening of new ortho programs and new dental schools.

your last sentence is actually somewhat funny since i just read this within the past few months. This is a list of the top most overpaid jobs in america.

"4) Orthodontists

For a 35-hour workweek, orthodontists earn a median $350,000 a year, according to the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics. General dentists, meanwhile, earn about half as much working 39 hours a week on average, in a much dirtier job.

The difference in their training isn't like that of a heart surgeon vs. a family-practice doctor. It's a mere two years, and a vastly rewarding investment if you're among the chosen: U.S. dental schools have long been criticized for keeping orthodontists in artificially low supply to keep their income up.

This isn't brain surgery: Orthodontists simply manipulate teeth in a growing child's mouth -- and often leave adjustment work to assistants whose handiwork they merely sign off on. What makes their windfall egregious is that they stick parents with most of the inflated bill, since orthodontia insurance benefits cover nowhere near as large a percentage as for general dentistry."

note the last sentence of the 2nd paragraph. just a thought 😀

http://www.dailycognition.com/index.php/2007/08/03/10-most-overpaid-jobs-in-usa.html

 

[yappy]

What a BS piece. You dont have to look far to find someone trying to drum up hate about why professional X is "overpaid". They seem to capitalize on the ignorance of their readership; who are often, not in the said profession (or any professional for that matter). They even ranked motivational speakers lower on the overpaid list than an orthodontist lol.

A small business owner - who chooses to specialize in a field like ortho - earns every cent they produce.

your last sentence is actually somewhat funny since i just read this within the past few months. This is a list of the top most overpaid jobs in america.

"4) Orthodontists

For a 35-hour workweek, orthodontists earn a median $350,000 a year, according to the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics. General dentists, meanwhile, earn about half as much working 39 hours a week on average, in a much dirtier job.

The difference in their training isn't like that of a heart surgeon vs. a family-practice doctor. It's a mere two years, and a vastly rewarding investment if you're among the chosen: U.S. dental schools have long been criticized for keeping orthodontists in artificially low supply to keep their income up.

This isn't brain surgery: Orthodontists simply manipulate teeth in a growing child's mouth -- and often leave adjustment work to assistants whose handiwork they merely sign off on. What makes their windfall egregious is that they stick parents with most of the inflated bill, since orthodontia insurance benefits cover nowhere near as large a percentage as for general dentistry."

note the last sentence of the 2nd paragraph. just a thought 😀

http://www.dailycognition.com/index.php/2007/08/03/10-most-overpaid-jobs-in-usa.html

 

[GatorDDS]

What a BS piece. You dont have to look far to find someone trying to drum up hate about why professional X is "overpaid". They seem to capitalize on the ignorance of their readership; who are often, not in the said profession (or any professional for that matter).

A small business owner - who chooses to specialize in a field like ortho - earns every cent they produce.

yes. I am a very ignorant reader not in any health field profession. And I also want to be a skycap bell making 100k curbside.

obviously any small business owner in any field of business who is smart will make money. thats BUSINESS

The purpose of the read is that compared to that of a GP or any other dental specialty, Orthodontists are overcompensated for the amount of dental work they actually do chairside. And I actually do believe that its not the skill work that any patient is paying for but the knowledge that the dentist has and can use (this sentence is defending the fees of an orthodontist). But ALMOST any GP can learn orthodontics and perform it as well as any orthodontist (yet not get compensated nearly as much)

like the article said, its not like a schooling or a difference of skill from a general physician vs. a neurosurgeon.

my main point of the article anyways was the last sentence. The profession of orthodontics keeping their numbers down to keep their salary up

 

[mr24]

yes. I am a very ignorant reader not in any health field profession. And I also want to be a skycap bell making 100k curbside.

obviously any small business owner in any field of business who is smart will make money. thats BUSINESS

The purpose of the read is that compared to that of a GP or any other dental specialty, Orthodontists are overcompensated for the amount of dental work they actually do chairside. And I actually do believe that its not the skill work that any patient is paying for but the knowledge that the dentist has and can use (this sentence is defending the fees of an orthodontist). But ALMOST any GP can learn orthodontics and perform it as well as any orthodontist (yet not get compensated nearly as much)

like the article said, its not like a schooling or a difference of skill from a general physician vs. a neurosurgeon.

my main point of the article anyways was the last sentence. The profession of orthodontics keeping their numbers down to keep their salary up

sounds like someone wanted to do ortho, but doesnt have the grades...?

people are worth what others are willing to pay them!

 

[GatorDDS]

sounds like someone wanted to do ortho, but doesnt have the grades...?

people are worth what others are willing to pay them!

LOL I really hope you do believe that.

 

[GatorDDS]

sounds like someone wanted to do ortho, but doesnt have the grades...?

people are worth what others are willing to pay them!

In all seriousness though. No I never wanted to do ortho when I entered in dental school and as I leave I never want to do ortho either. I personally find it very boring although I know a lot of my classmates find it very stimulating. I do respect the specialty as I respect all specialties. Just not for me which is why im going into pros.

the whole point of my first post was i thought it was funny that he brought up that the danger in his specialty is more schools opening and more ortho programs opening. Kinda proving what i pointed out initially in my original post.

 

[yappy]

Gator DDS, I respect that you're in DS and my message was not towards you, but rather a general comment about the type of people that remark on earnings.

To be specific, I think the article is flawed. They're making a compairison between average general and ortho wages and claim that the ortho is overpaid. In effect, they're looking at their average net income and not billings (the thing that consumers care about). If they were to control for different costs of overhead, cost of training post-grad, types of compensation (public vs privite), and perhaps most importantly: the type of employment (coperate vs owner & FT vs PT), the pay difference may not seem as great and one could it say it is justified by the additonal years of training the ortho performed.

I've never read any data that suggested that the #'s of ortho were kept low in order to keep prices high - though this is a general aruement you could make about any professional - unrealistic or not.

 

[jay47]

The real question when asking which profession is recession proof is to determine what it would mean to be "affected by the recession". If the orthodontist is making $250K vs $350K, is that really that bad? All you have to do in these specialties when patients decline is cut your hours, increase efficiency and pick up a hobby. Orthodontists are going nowhere- just like any of the other specialties.

Existing dentists will adapt to paradigm changes just like any other field- they may change roles, but they will still have a job.

 

[Squished Rat]

yes. I am a very ignorant reader not in any health field profession. And I also want to be a skycap bell making 100k curbside.

obviously any small business owner in any field of business who is smart will make money. thats BUSINESS

The purpose of the read is that compared to that of a GP or any other dental specialty, Orthodontists are overcompensated for the amount of dental work they actually do chairside. And I actually do believe that its not the skill work that any patient is paying for but the knowledge that the dentist has and can use (this sentence is defending the fees of an orthodontist). But ALMOST any GP can learn orthodontics and perform it as well as any orthodontist (yet not get compensated nearly as much)

like the article said, its not like a schooling or a difference of skill from a general physician vs. a neurosurgeon.

my main point of the article anyways was the last sentence. The profession of orthodontics keeping their numbers down to keep their salary up

Really? You think that 95% of GP's can learn to do ortho as well as any orthodontist? 🙄

 

[GatorDDS]

Really? You think that 95% of GP's can learn to do ortho as well as any orthodontist? 🙄

if they took the time out of their schedule to go learn it then yes ALOT of GPs can do 90-95% of the cases that orthodontists do.

 

[Demps]

if they took the time out of their schedule to go learn it then yes ALOT of GPs can do 90-95% of the cases that orthodontists do.

That is interesting to hear, really? Can you elaborate more