Dentist to population ratio and geographic distribution of dentists in Iran in 2019

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Assistant Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, School of Dentistry, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

2 Modeling in Health Research Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

3 Professor, Department of Periodontics, School of Dentistry, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

4 Medical Education Research Center, Education Development Center, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

5 Assistant Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, School of Dentistry, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND AIM: In the current healthcare system of Iran, there is a great emphasis on improving the quality healthcare services and access of all people to these services, especially in the field of oral health. Achieving this goal requires the provision of services by dentists. In order to adopt the best policies in this regard, having up-to-date knowledge on the number and distribution of the workforce is crucial. Therefore, the aim of this study was to present a report on the status of dental resources in Iran in 2019 based on the number of dentists.
METHODS: In the present descriptive study, data was collected from several sources. The statistics of specialist dentists graduated in the country were collected through correspondence with all dentistry faculties of the country. In addition to presenting the statistics of available dentists and dentists employed in the country, the "dentist to population ratio" index was also used to examine the distribution of dentists across the country.
RESULTS: The number of general and specialist dentists across Iran in 2019 is calculated to be 30811 and 4593, respectively. Notably, the largest number of specialists was in the specialized field of endodontics (13.8%), and the lowest number belonged to oral and maxillofacial pathology (4.2%). In Iran, there are 43 dentists per 100000 people. The number of general and specialist dentists with office license and employed in the private sectors is 18287 and 2773, respectively. Moreover, overall, 36 state universities in 10 specialized fields offer courses with 1824 specialists as faculty members.
CONCLUSION: Although the number of general and specialist dentists in the country has increased considerably in recent years, the distribution of these individuals across different regions of Iran has been overlooked, and the dentist to 100000 population ratio differs in various provinces of the country.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

  1. Gallagher JE, Hutchinson L. Analysis of human resources for oral health globally: Inequitable distribution. Int Dent J 2018; 68(3): 183-9.
  2. Koletsi-Kounari H, Papaioannou W, Stefaniotis T. Greece's high dentist to population ratio: comparisons, causes, and effects. J Dent Educ 2011; 75(11): 1507-15.
  3. Jean G, Kruger E, Tennant M. The distribution of dentists in Australia Socio-economic profile as an indicator of access to services. Community Dent Health 2020; 37(1): 5-11.
  4. Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health. Dental specialists in Australia. Aust Dent J 2010; 55(1): 96-100.
  5. Kravitz AS, Bulloc A, Cowpe J. EU Manual of Dental Practice 2015 [Online]. [cited 2015 Feb]; Available from: URL: https://www.omd.pt/content/uploads/2017/12/ced-manual-2015-completo.pdf
  6. Graham B, Tennant M, Shiikha Y, Kruger E. Distribution of Australian private dental practices: Contributing underlining sociodemographics in the maldistribution of the dental workforce. Aust J Prim Health 2019; 25(1): 54-9.
  7. AlBaker AA, Al-Ruthia YSH, AlShehri M, Alshuwairikh S. The characteristics and distribution of dentist workforce in Saudi Arabia: A descriptive cross-sectional study. Saudi Pharm J 2017; 25(8): 1208-16.
  8. Bhayat A, Chikte U. The changing demographic profile of dentists and dental specialists in South Africa: 2002-2015. Int Dent J 2018; 68(2): 91-6.
  9. Gonzalez-Robledo LM, Gonzalez-Robledo MC, Nigenda G. Dentist education and labour market in Mexico: Elements for policy definition. Hum Resour Health 2012; 10: 31.

10. Tabatabai S, Simforoosh N, Mohsen Ziaee SA. Iran's postgraduate medical education achievements over last 35 years. J Adv Med Med Res 2015; 10(1):1-6.

11. Azizi F. Medical education in the Islamic Republic of Iran: Three decades of success. Iran J Public Health 2009; 38(Supple 1): 19-26.

12. Simforoosh N, Ziaee SA, Tabatabai SH. Growth trends in medical specialists education in Iran; 1. Arch Iran Med 2014; 17(11): 771-5.

13. Lebaron SW, Schultz SH. Family medicine in Iran: The birth of a new specialty. Fam Med 2005; 37(7): 502-5.

  1. Northridge ME, Kumar A, Kaur R. Disparities in access to oral health care. Annu Rev Public Health 2020; 41: 513-35.

15. Kiadaliri AA, Hosseinpour R, Haghparast-Bidgoli H, Gerdtham UG. Pure and social disparities in distribution of dentists: A cross-sectional province-based study in Iran. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2013; 10(5): 1882-94.

16. Faraji Khiavi F, Maleki M, Djafarian K, Vatankhah S, Tabibi S. A model for policy making in human resources for health sector Iran. Res J Biol Sci 2010; 5: 380-8.

17. Hashemi H, Haghdoost AA, Haji-Aghajani M, Janbabaee G, Maher A, Noori HS, et al. A Successful implementation of an idea to a nationally approved plan: Analyzing Iran's National Health Roadmap using the Kingdon model of policymaking. Med J Islam Repub Iran 2018; 32: 46.

Journal of Oral Health and Oral Epidemiology
Volume 10, Issue 2
April 2021
Pages 72-80

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 23 July 2020
  • Revise Date: 17 November 2020
  • Accept Date: 30 May 2021

Share

How to cite

Statistics