CHWS Report: Dental Therapists Improve Outcomes for Patients

A dental team provides care to a patient at Apple Tree Dental in Minnesota.
A dental team provides patient care at Apple Tree Dental in Minnesota, one of the first employers of dental therapists in the U.S. (Photo by Apple Tree Dental)

ALBANY, N.Y. (June 16, 2022) — The Center for Health Workforce Studies (CHWS) at UAlbany's School of Public Health recently 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.

They found that dentists can work more effectively and efficiently when teamed with a dental therapist, while patient satisfaction was also greatly improved

Dental therapy is a workforce model that introduces mid-level practitioners — dental therapists (DTs) — with both preventive and restorative skills. The introduction of dental therapists appears to improve access to and equity in dental service delivery in the U.S.

The study conducted by the Oral Health Workforce Research Center (OHWRC) at CHWS assessed the satisfaction of key stakeholders at Apple Tree Dental, which was among the first employers of dental therapists in the U.S., employing them since 2012. 

The OHWRC report describes the results from 2 surveys. The first survey conducted February-April 2021 assessed clinician and administration satisfaction with the use of dental therapists on oral health teams at Apple Tree Dental. The second assessed patient satisfaction with their clinical providers making comparisons across provider type and was conducted February-August 2021.

Among the key findings:

  • Dental teams are very satisfied with the addition of dental therapists. DTs fit very well on dental teams while performing high-quality work. Dentists can also work more effectively and efficiently when teamed with DTs.
  • Dental teams are able to provide timelier services with delivery and reduced wait times. Patients also found that more dental care needs were met in individual visits. Patients were also very satisfied with all dimensions of their dental care.
  • DTs also felt they were valued members of their clinical teams.

“This research illustrates the successful integration of dental therapists into established dental teams,” says CHWS Project Director Margaret Langelier. “Not only do dental therapists help increase organizational capacity and access to care, but our study indicates that patient satisfaction is high with these new dental providers.”

Established in 1996, CHWS is an academic research organization, based at the School of Public Health, University at Albany, State University of New York (SUNY). The mission of CHWS is to provide timely, accurate data and conduct policy relevant research about the health workforce. The research conducted by CHWS supports and promotes health workforce planning and policymaking at local, regional, state, and national levels. Today, CHWS is a national leader in the field of health workforce studies, and the only HRSA-sponsored center with a unique focus on the oral health workforce.