The Contributions of Dental Therapists to Improved Efficiency and Greater Capacity in the Dental Centers of Apple Tree Dental in Minnesota

Audience: AcademyHealth’s 2021 Annual Research Meeting
Date: June 14-17, 2021
Presented by: Simona Surdu

(Poster #450)
Dental therapy is a relatively new workforce model in which the clinician is trained to perform preventive and basic restorative dental services. This poster describes and compares the type and quantity of services provided by dentists before and after the introduction of dental therapy at Apple Tree Dental in Minnesota, a large non-profit community dental provider. Findings suggest that the introduction of dental therapists to clinical teams enhances capacity and productivity, enabling dental providers to meet increasing demand from patient populations.

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