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The Bell BriefFrom Dr. Jennifer Bell, DDS MAGD FICD
HIGHBusinessTier 1

Some dental hygienist positions open for more than 6 months amid hiring challenges: ADA

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

Practice owners and DSOs face sustained revenue loss and delayed care when hygienist vacancies remain unfilled for six months or longer, according to the ADA’s Q3 2026 workforce report.

Key points

  • ADA’s State of the U.S. Dental Economy report for Q3 2026 states that 21.2 % of dentists filled hygienist positions only after six months or more.
  • One-third of dentists were actively recruiting hygienists in Q3 2026; the vast majority described the search as very or extremely challenging.
  • Among dentists who filled hygienist roles in Q3 2026, 19.2 % reported vacancies lasting three to six months.
  • The same report shows that only 9.6 % of dentists filled hygienist positions in less than two weeks during Q3 2026.

Who should care

OwnerDSOStaff

Read the original on Becker's Dental + DSO Review

Full reporting and any paywall content live on beckersdental.com. We summarize and score; we do not republish.

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