NPR
Dental Therapy could be one solution for improving oral care in underserved rural communities. What new momentum is there for dental therapy, and why is the American Dental Association pushing back?
The Wenatchee World
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community continues to advocate for legislation that would allow dental therapists to practice throughout the state.
Dental therapists are mid-level providers capable of performing about 50 of the approximately 500 procedures a dentist can provide, such as fillings and simple extractions…
…According to a 2017 study by the Center for Health Workforce Studies, rural, low-income and patients with limited English proficiency have less access to oral health care and poorer oral health outcomes…
Dentistry Today
Dental therapy is a workforce model that introduces mid-level practitioners – dental therapists – to both preventive and restorative skills.
The introduction of dental therapists appears to improve access to and equity in dental service delivery in the US.
A recent study conducted by the Oral Health Workforce Research Center (OHWRC) at the University at Albany’s Center for Health Workforce Studies (CHWS) assessed the satisfaction of clinical providers, organizational administrators, and patients with dental therapists working at Apple Tree Dental in Minnesota, the first US state to authorize dental therapy practice statewide. Apple Tree Dental was among the first employers of dental therapists, employing them since 2012…
