How the Future of Dentistry Looks to Young Practitioners
The Secret to Our Future Leadership Daniel A. Hammer, DDS, FACD
Abstract The pandemic caught all by surprise. Some like dentistry have recovered quickly; others are facing increasingly severe echoes. The prognosticators about the “new normal” are rehearsing the customary challenges of technology, delivery models, and student debt and are generally moving only so far as compiling a list questions to prove how serious they are. The one constant is that the only healthy future is one that will have leaders showing the way.
Dr. Hammer is director of Research, Oral, Head and Neck Oncology and Maxillofacial Reconstructive Microsurgery and Director, Microvascular Surgery Training, Naval Medical Center San Diego; danielhammeroms@gmail.com. He was the Regent Intern of the college from 2015–2016.
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hat will oral health and dentistry look like in 20 years? As I write this, the number of Covid19 cases is rising throughout the country and the “third peak” is present in numerous regions throughout the United States and the world. As we all adjust to this continuously changing situation, to predict what dentistry may look like in six months, let alone 20 years, is extremely challenging. There is so much to be learned about the virus, its transmission, and overall behavior that regulators and practitioners alike cannot speak with absolute confidence regarding safety protocols or patient care delivery models. However, to date, there has not been any outbreak attributed to a dental office, and the infection rate among dentists is less than one percent. Dentistry has done an incredible job adapting to this everchanging landscape and continuing to provide safe care to our patients. The pandemic has undoubtedly changed everything. We will shape the future course of our profession by how we collectively evaluate and respond to the current threats and opportunities presented by the Covid-19 pandemic. The answers to our most pressing questions will not be solved by a single stakeholder or interest group. It will require extensive collaboration in order to foresee second and third order effects and to successfully navigate the emerging challenges. The optimism I have for the continued adaptability and success of our profession is grounded in the fact that this is not the first time we have
been confronted by a pandemic of unknown severity or duration. In the 1980s, the HIV epidemic was at the forefront and dentistry responded with a concerted effort to ensure safety for both healthcare teams and patients. The emergence of HIV led to significant changes to all healthcare practices with the implementation of universal precautions, which are now standard operating procedure for all fields in dentistry and medicine. Adherence to these guidelines is the most effective way to protect ourselves and the patients we serve. These regulations took time to develop and their implementation in everyday practice was slow and deliberate, and we can predict similar changes in the post-Covid era regarding aerosolizing procedures. In order to determine the most critical challenges and largest opportunities for our profession, we need to look at dentistry’s current state. According to the Economic Impact on Dental Practices Report released from the American Dental Association on October 19, 2020, our profession has made significant progress since the onset of the pandemic.1 The report is the result of more than 13,000 dentists reporting the current trends within their practices. Nearly all (98.7%) of dental practices surveyed were open, although 59.3% of practices noted limited hours compared to prior to the pandemic. In addition a large number (64.2%) of dentists reported they are
2020
Volume 87, Number 4
