UCLA study finds severe shortage of Latino dentists

FINDINGS: A study from UCLA’s Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture finds that the number of Latinos who graduated from dental schools, and hence able to acquire licenses to practice dentistry in California, fell by nearly 80 percent between 1982 and 1999 from 74 to 15 percent, even as the state’s Latino population increased by 42.7 percent (7.7 million to 10 million) during that time.

IMPACT: Latino dentists are likely to both speak Spanish and English, and to practice in areas with heavy Latino populations. As a result, there will be fewer dentists to serve this population. Also, the shortfall during that period was so large that a dramatic increase would not make up the difference today.

AUTHORS: David Hayes-Bautista, Mariam Iya Kahramanian, Erin G. Richardson, Paul Hsu, Lucette Sosa, Cristina Gamboa, and Robert Stein, all of UCLA.

JOURNAL: Journal of Dental Education, February issue.

FUNDERS: Research was funded by UCLA’s Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture.