Recent Canadian dental graduates take more time to set up their practice than older dentists, according to results from the Dental Industry Association of Canada (DIAC) 17th annual Future of Dentistry Survey.
While most dentists with 16 or more years in practice reported setting up their first practice within 3 years of graduation, this figure has been in decline since 2008—from about 40% in 2008 to 11% in 2013. This trend can also be observed among dentists with 4 to 9 years of practice experience. It is assumed that the recent economic climate, its impact on patient loads and the rising costs of education and practice set-up may be contributing factors.
In the same vein, the percentage of shared practices has increased within the past 5 years, climbing from 26% to 32% for practices with 2 dentists, and from 5.9% to 8.9% for practices with 4 or more dentists. Conversely, the percentage of sole practitioners has dropped from 44% to 37%. These numbers seem to indicate that more dentists now opt for shared practices to reduce their expenses or in preparation to retirement.
Over 1000 practising Canadian dentists responded to this year’s survey. These dentists were eligible for a random draw to win prizes and Dr. Julia Wowchuck of Saint John, New Brunswick, was the grand prize winner of a $1000 travel voucher.
The 10 consolation prize winners, who will each receive $100 travel vouchers, are: Dr. Stan Reich of Beaconsfield, Quebec; Dr. Don Bland of Gibbons, British Columbia; Dr. Lawrence Chong of Sault Ste Marie, Ontario; Dr. Lorrie Matthews of Swan River, Manitoba; Dr. Joseph W. Foster of Toronto; Dr. David Plosz of Saskatoon; Dr. Stan Dubickas of Burlington, Ontario; Dr. Christine Carroll of Cochrane, Alberta; Dr. Luke Haslam of Digby, Nova Scotia; and Dr. David Fownes of Pointe-Claire, Quebec.
For more information on the DIAC survey, contact Bernie Teitelbaum, executive director of DIAC at bernie@diac.ca.