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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Dental workforce

Innovative Solutions to Address the Oral Health Care Workforce Shortage: Insights from Michigan
Discusses the impact of the oral healthcare workforce shortage on rural communities and other communities in need in Michigan. Provides examples, strategies, and collaborative efforts of State Medicaid agencies to address the shortage.
Author(s): Jade Kissi
Date: 03/2025
Sponsoring organization: Center for Health Care Strategies
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North Carolina Dental Health - Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA)
County-level map of Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) in North Carolina, with shadings showing ranges of HPSA scores.
Date: 03/2025
Sponsoring organization: North Carolina Office of Rural Health
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Virginia's Dentistry Workforce: 2024
An overview of the dentistry workforce in Virginia based on data from the 2024 Dentistry Survey. Features statistics including the number of dentists in rural Virginia and how many grew up in rural areas.
Date: 02/2025
Sponsoring organization: Virginia Department of Health Professions
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Training a Rural Oral Health Workforce: Effects of Rural Background on Dentist Practice Choice
Assesses outcomes from 2012-2021 of the Regional Initiatives in Dental Education (RIDE) program, an educational track of the University of Washington School of Dentistry that aims to produce graduates who practice in rural areas of the Pacific Northwest. Features demographics and statistics with breakdowns by rural or nonrural upbringing.
Author(s): Anna R. Forsyth, Arsen A. Melkonyan, Kristopher Kerns, et al.
Citation: Journal of Dental Education, 89(2), 177-185
Date: 02/2025
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2023 Pennsylvania Dentist and Dental Hygienist Workforce Survey Report
Presents findings from the 2023 Dentist Survey and 2023 Dental Hygienist Survey, designed to collect information on the characteristics and distribution of the dentist and dental hygienist workforces in Pennsylvania. Features demographics and statistics with breakdowns by urban and rural location.
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: Pennsylvania Department of Health
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Virginia's Dental Hygienist Workforce: 2024
An overview of the Virginia dental hygienist workforce based on data from the 2024 Dental Hygienist Workforce Survey. Features statistics on the number of dental hygienists working in rural Virginia as well as how many grew up in rural areas of Virginia.
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: Virginia Department of Health Professions
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Vermont 2023 Census of Dentists: Statistical Report
Presents detailed profiles of dentists who renewed their Vermont licenses in September 2023, to be used as the basis for policy analysis, shortage area designations, and recruitment and retention. Features statistics including a section on primary care dentistry-to-population ratios with breakdowns by county.
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: Vermont Department of Health
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Rural Oral Health Seminar Toolkit
Toolkit highlights resources and best practices for dental schools looking to create a rural oral health seminar. Discusses the importance of providing a rural-focused seminar for dental students and how rural experience and exposure can aid in recruitment of oral health professionals to rural areas with dental health professional shortage designations. Provides examples and best practices for constructing the seminar.
Date: 01/2025
Sponsoring organization: National Rural Health Association
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Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce Loan Repayment & Scholarship Awards Report: Fiscal Year 2025
Features sections on the Physicians for Rural Areas Assistance Program (PRAAP) and the Dentists for Rural Areas Assistance Program (DRAAP). Features county-level maps showing areas with improved access to care due to PRAAP and DRAAP.
Date: 2025
Sponsoring organization: Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce
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Challenges and Strategies to Improve Access to Oral Health Care in Rural America
Provides an overview of barriers to oral health in rural areas, and discusses strategies to increase access to oral health care and improve rural public health outcomes. Covers topics including dental insurance, service delivery models, oral health workforce, the role of oral health professionals in addressing opioid and tobacco use, and water fluoridation.
Author(s): Liang Hong, Shillpa Naavaal, Sohini Dhar, Siddardha Chandrupatla
Date: 2025
Sponsoring organization: American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD)
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