The Delta Dental Foundation (DDF) and the Michigan Primary Care Association recently hosted oral health safety-net experts from across Michigan for the Third Annual Oral Health Workforce Development Summit.
More than 60 stakeholders came, and professional facilitators guided the discussion about strengthening and diversifying the oral health safety net in Michigan.
“We hosted the first Oral Health Workforce Development Summit in 2022, and those discussions helped inform the ‘workforce development’ pillar of our strategic plan,” says Holli Seabury, executive director of the DDF.
During the summit, representatives from safety-net clinics detailed significant recruiting challenges, which, in some cases, has led to chronic understaffing. This, in turn, causes increased wait times and decreased patient capacities, a critical problem when many of these clinics are the only places where people can receive no- or low-cost dental care.
According to Seabury, it’s not just about increasing the number of oral health professionals—though that’s certainly part of it.
“We also need to develop and support programs that recruit providers from diverse backgrounds and train providers in equity-based approaches to care,” she said. “Not everyone knows that oral health is a career pathway that might be available to them.”
Right now, fewer than 10% of dentists are Black, Hispanic or Indigenous, even though people from those communities account for more than one-third of the U.S. population. Hygienists, on the other hand, are overwhelmingly represented by white women (94%), which tells us there are huge opportunities to improve gender parity, too.
Dennise Hodge, who manages population health initiatives at Delta Dental of Michigan, was among the attendees.
“Participating in the workforce development summit was an amazing opportunity to foster and facilitate innovation in addressing the need for diverse communities to consider careers in oral health,” Hodge said. “I loved the premise that there were no bad ideas. We are all coming together to shape a future where oral health career paths are inclusive and representative of the communities we live, work, and play in.”
Dental care remains underused by or inaccessible to many communities of color—largely due to historical disenfranchisement and discrimination. Today, one in five people of color report experiencing racism or discrimination in a health care setting. As a result, many have poorer oral health and higher rates of periodontal disease and tooth decay, which can lead to tooth loss and other health issues.
But, as Hodge mentioned, an inclusive oral health workforce that’s representative of the communities they serve, can help. As an example, evidence suggests patients of color receive better care from—and establish greater trust with—providers who look like they do.
So, what happens now that the two-day summit is over?
 |
| Summit attendees listen to Misty Davis, RDH, speak. (Photo by Jen Anderson) |
The DDF uses the ideas and energy generated by the summit to power a variety of workforce development projects—such as Hygienist Inspired. The Oral Health Workforce Development Initiative also convenes throughout the year, often in the form of subcommittee meetings, to continue focused program development related to recruitment (generating interest in oral health careers), career pathways (helping people get the resources and training they need to become oral health professionals), and workforce environments and retention (making safety-net dental clinics great, inclusive places to work).
Stay tuned to learn more about how the projects are being formalized by the Oral Health Workforce Development Initiative!