Dentistry in 10 years

[mx41]

I read somewhere that 4000 dental students graduate, while 6000 dentists are retiring each year. Does anyone know when the number of retiring dentists will decrease repidly?

 

[armorshell]

May 3rd, 2017 4:18AM

 

[KOM]

👍

 

[Cold Front]

I read somewhere that 4000 dental students graduate, while 6000 dentists are retiring each year. Does anyone know when the number of retiring dentists will decrease repidly?

Over the next decade...

- about 5 more dental schools will open, many schools will increase their class sizes by 10%.
- almost 1/4 of current U.S. dentists will retire, but the total number of dentist workforce will more or less remain constant, if not slightly less.
- More foreign trained dentist programs will be introduced, both in the U.S. and overseas.

meanwhile...

- the U.S. population will increase by 10% or 30 million (currently 1% or 3 million a year).
- there will be a huge demand for # assistants and hygienists, so expect more people to enter these professions.
- technological advances, new products and new dental techniques will reduce the time dentists treat patients, and ultimately allow doctors to see more patients.
- people in the U.S. who are over the age of 60 will be the biggest group that will see their dentists, and also the wealthiest in the country.
- Unfortunately, many dentists will decide to retire early from the field, putting more pressure to the ever growing demand.

etc..

 

[Hysteria24]

I read somewhere that 4000 dental students graduate, while 6000 dentists are retiring each year. Does anyone know when the number of retiring dentists will decrease repidly?

So from what you say we lose 2,000 dentists from the workforce every year, and according to the ADA: As of 2005, there were 176,634 professionally active dentists (http://www.ada.org/ada/prod/survey/faq.asp#workforce).


After doing some fuzzy math, it looks as though we have roughly 88 years before dentists become extinct.

 

[laundry]

ahhh...right around the time I finish all my schooling 😀

 

[Hysteria24]

ahhh...right around the time I finish all my schooling 😀

No worries about saturation for you! 👍

 

[Cold Front]

Many dentists who have lost a lot of money in the stock market recently have decided (or had the decision made for them) to work longer... Therefore, the number of retiring practitioners in the short-run has dried up. But as the economy recovers over the next 5 years, the # dentists retiring should well exceed the number entering the profession.

No need to frustrate over this issue, these things go through cycles.