Federal investments in community-based residency training programs are helping drive a powerful response to the nation’s dental workforce shortages, creating new pathways to care in rural and underserved communities that need it most.
Through the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education, or THCGME, and Teaching Health Center Planning and Development, or THCPD, programs, community health centers across the country are creating dental residency programs designed to recruit, train and retain dentists in areas with the greatest need.
The ADA has long advocated for policies that strengthen the dental workforce and improve access to care, including support for federal programs that expand training opportunities in underserved communities. Leaders involved in THCGME said the programs demonstrate how targeted federal appropriations can help sustain dental training programs while building long-term workforce pipelines.
Source: Federal funding sparks new dental workforce in underserved communities / ADA News