Impressions
Workforce ! by Dr . Stephen T . Radack III , Editor
As we started to gather the content for this Workforce-themed issue of your Pennsylvania Dental Journal , it got me thinking about how much change has occurred in our profession when it comes to the employees that work in our offices . Even the paths most of my classmates took back in the 80s to start their careers are vastly different from the paths people are taking today . Like most new grads back then , the goal was always to own your own private practice if you were not going into a specialty . There were no DSOs or corporate practices , and only a few large group practices back then . Most of us would “ find ” a seasoned dentist who was ready to retire , arrange to buy their practice and then , voila , you were in business ! The problem is most of us knew nothing about running a business , especially about hiring a new employee !
I remember the staff of one I inherited when I bought my practice . She was both the receptionist and a sometime dental assistant . She had been with the dentist for 25 + years and was very loyal to him . I am sure she was not happy he decided to sell and then retire . She left in less than a year , and then I had to find a replacement and someone to do both jobs . So , I did what everyone did in the days before Indeed and LinkedIn . I placed an ad in the Classifieds section of my local newspaper and waited for the flood of responses to arrive . In most cases there would be a few responses followed by interviews and then hopefully someone accepting your offer . In Erie we had at least two or three programs for dental assisting , but no dental hygiene programs at that time . I did not have a hygienist in my practice at that time .
When the time came to hire a hygienist , that is where things got interesting . With the closest hygiene schools being in the Buffalo , Cleveland and Pittsburgh metro areas , there was a lot of competition to fill the position . Most of the time you were just taking a hygienist from another practice . It is very similar to today in Erie . I was lucky to fill the job pretty quickly and get someone who was eager to help me add a new position to my staff . When I hired my next hygienist , I was lucky to get a new grad from Youngstown State . This was a unique opportunity to grow the department and get her started on her career path . I was lucky that she stayed with me through three pregnancies and until they relocated for her husband ’ s job .
By this time in Erie , we had a dental hygiene program , and as new grads of that program started to look for a job the tables seemed to be turned from years ago . I know most of us would love to have this problem today – too many hygienists and too few dentists hiring . There were lots of dentists who were just hiring part-time and had more than a few hygienists working in their practices . On the other side of that same coin were the hygienists who had to work for two or three doctors to add up to a full-time job . This market continued until that school closed , and as you can imagine dentists were back in the workforce dynamic of the 80s again .
As most of us know , the COVID-19 pandemic changed everything , especially the dental workforce . So many staff members , especially dental hygienists , left the profession and there were not enough remaining or graduating to replace them . I have many friends that have practiced for over 30 years who lost a staff member , either because they were dropping completely out of dentistry or got “ stolen ” by another dentist in town . So now they are doing both hygiene as well as the general history they always did . In the post-pandemic world , hygienists can command their salary and benefits and dentists have no choice but to agree or clean teeth again .
I consider myself fortunate , as most of my staff had been with me over 20 years . I despised going through the process of hiring and was blessed to have a great long-term group to work with . I can imagine the process is much harder now . To that end , as you will find out in this workforce-themed special issue of your PDJ , the PDA along with the dental schools , allied dental professional schools and the Pennsylvania Coalition for Oral Health are working hard turn the tables on the shortage of dentists and dental staff members . Dr . Jim Mancini , our Ninth District trustee , has been leading the charge on this issue for PDA and has been out with other concerned members speaking to high school guidance counselors to get the ball rolling early and encourage students to consider a career in our profession .
Yes , these are challenging times in dentistry and the solutions will not come quickly , but know that organized dentistry and YOUR PDA are advocating for us , and hopefully we will see a time when workforce shortages are something we will speak about in the past tense !
— STR3
SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2024 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL 5