The University of New Mexico

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Division of Dental Services



New Mexico Dentist Shortage

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The Problem

According to a report by the American Dental Education Association (ADEA) entitled Bridging the Gap: Partnerships Between Dental Schools and Colleges To Produce A Workforce To Fully Serve America’s Diverse Communities (Bridging the Gap Report), low income and rural communities are underserved in terms of oral health needs:

  • - There is a dearth of dentists available to serve the population.
  • - Thirty million Americans live in these shortage areas and in all there are over
       109 million Americans without dental insurance.
  • - Only 16 percent of dentists in 35 states participate actively in the Medicaid
       program
  • - The dentist-to-population ratio by race/ethnic divide is extremely low
  • - The number of federally designated dental shortage areas have doubled from
       approximately 700 to 1,400 in the past decade.


Eliminating or reducing disparities in oral heath based on low income, race and ethnicity is a stated goal in the Surgeon General’s Healthy People 2010 report and a new cadre of dentists committed to this goal is essential to achieving such a goal.


New Mexico’s Underserved

Not surprisingly, New Mexico is a minority-majority state: The combined Hispanic, Native American and African American populations outnumber the Caucasian population.

The University of New Mexico itself is a leading Hispanic and Native American-serving research institution with a medical school, colleges of nursing and pharmacy, and a public health program. Almost half of its 32,300 students are minorities, including 30.5 % Hispanic and 12 % Native American.

The Bridging the Gap Report indicated that this outreach to underrepresented minority students will work best in:

  • - States that recognize that there is a major dental access problem in low-income and communities of color.
  • - Locations where there are URM pipeline programs in existence
  • - Willing parties between minority serving colleges/universities, and dental and medical schools.



Opportunities to Serve

NMmap

Students enrolled at UNM’s AEGD program are given the unique opportunity to practice in under-served communities throughout the state. UNM has a partnership with two rural health clinics in rural New Mexico: one in Roswell, NM (alien capital of the country), and historic Silver City, NM. (See AEGD website for more information on these clinics). Expansion of the AEGD program to additional sites throughout New Mexico is planned.

Many AEGD alumni have chosen to practice in New Mexico, in both the Albuquerque metro area and in rural areas. In addition to private practice settings, alumni are working with underserved populations in a variety of public health situations. For more information on what our alumni are up to now, please see the Alumni section.

On serving the underserved: 23 of the 37 UNM residents have remained in New Mexico [62%] in the first six years of the program.

First Choice 2

"After moving from New York, I was shocked to find out how underserved New Mexico is as far as healthcare providers. I have never regretted my decision to come to this program or to New Mexico and in fact have decided to stay in Albuquerque.” – Javeriah Haleem, DDS.

“The training I received has fully prepared me to give the very best emergency and comprehensive treatment to an underserved population. I have recently taken on a public health position as Chief Dental Officer. The combination of didactic and clinical instruction was extremely effective in preparing me as a well rounded dentist. ” – Chris Dixon, DDS.