HIGHBusinessTier 1
Dental assistant employment to grow by 7%: 6 notes
SourceBecker's Dental + DSO ReviewTier 1Hard News
By Ariana Portalatin
Originally at beckersdental.com
Summary & scoring by The Bell Brief (Dr. Jennifer Bell) using the Drill-Down Protocol (Drill-Down Score) — not the original publisher.
Why it matters for dental
Dental practice owners and DSOs will face a tighter labor market for dental assistants through 2035, requiring proactive recruitment, retention, and compensation strategies to maintain operational capacity and patient throughput.
Key points
- Projected 7% growth in dental assistant positions by 2035 exceeds the average for all occupations, indicating sustained demand for support staff across general and specialty practices.
- BLS data cited in the report flags ongoing recruitment and retention challenges that could increase staffing costs or reduce appointment availability if not addressed.
- Practices heavily reliant on assistants for chairside efficiency and sterilization workflows should model future hiring pipelines and consider cross-training or expanded benefits to compete for talent.
- Multi-location DSOs may need to adjust staffing ratios and onboarding timelines to accommodate projected growth in assistant demand across markets.
Who should care
OwnerDSOStaff
Read the original on Becker's Dental + DSO Review
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