Dentistry remains one of the most challenging, rewarding and stressful career choices available. However, it is also a profession that continues to remain in demand, particularly as the average age of the population increases and people lead more sedentary lifestyles. Given this, are dentists still at risk from an oversupply of new practitioners? In 2018, there were almost 200,000 registered dentists in the India working in practices that range from solo offices to large chains. But with so many dentist in India are toiling away for so many organisations, is the industry saturated? Or does it still have plenty of room for growth and development? In this article we’ll explore this topic in more depth.
What is dentistry saturation? Dentist in India
Saturation is the point at which there are more practitioners than there is opportunity. It’s important to note that this is not simply the number of dentists, but the number of dentists relative to the demand for their skills. If there are more individuals practicing than there are patients needing their services, then the profession is said to be saturated. Saturation can occur at the individual, state, or national level. And while there is no single agreed-upon definition of dental “oversupply”, there are a few measurable indicators that can be used to assess the risk of oversupply in a given area.
➤ Dental school enrollment rates
➯ Dentists changing jobs in India
➤ Dental school graduation rates
➯ Dentists leaving the profession
➤ Growth in the number of dental schools
➯ State licensure exam passage rates
Dental school enrollment and graduation rates
Dental school enrollment has been on the rise since the early 2000’s. Enrollment spiked in the late 80’s and early 90’s as a result of the federal government relaxing restrictions on student loans. The growth in enrollment at this time led to a situation of oversupply in the dental profession. The number of dental school graduates has largely been falling since the early 2000s.
According to the American Dental Association, dental school graduation rates peaked in 2001 at around 30,000 new practitioners. In the last 15 years, the number of new graduates has fallen to around 17,000. These figures are somewhat interesting given the growth in enrollment. This suggests that a large proportion of new students are either leaving the profession or quitting a dental career. If this trend continues, the result could be a significant oversupply of dentists in India in the near future.
Dentists in India are leaving the profession and quitting
The number of Dentistry leaving the profession and quitting jobs has been on the rise since the early 2000s. This suggests that the profession is having trouble retaining practitioners. This could be due to a number of reasons including increased educational debt, excessive regulation, and decreasing reimbursement rates. If this trend continues, then could lead to increase the number of dental school graduates needed to fill the gap. If this happens, then there could be an oversupply of dentists in the long term.
India’s excellent talent pool is regularly fortified with skilled work force from over 100 universities housing more than ten thousand colleges offering professional education. This army of trained candidates allows India to offer the most advanced services at competitive costs across the board. The government has been providing aids and scholarships, to boost medical education in the country. Several students and aspiring doctors get trained under some of the finest surgeons from USA, UK, and Europe including cardiac, dentistry, physician etc.
Conclusion
Rising domestic demand has promoted the development of excellent medical infrastructure by the private hospitals in India, thereby introducing newer technologies and services at competitive prices. In spite of growing costs, patients can expect facilities and medical care at par with best hospitals in the world at valued prices. The check up and treatment require less or no waiting time. Quick turnaround time is a facet India can do with the availability of manpower, right skill set and infrastructure.
But with so many dentists toiling away for so many organisations, is the industry saturated? Or does it still have plenty of room for growth and development? The article above explores this topic in more depth. It is important to note that this is not simply the number of dentists, but the number of dentists relative to the demand for their skills.
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