Publications

Evaluation of Strategies to Recruit Oral Health Care Providers To Underserved Areas of California

Author(s): 

Elizabeth Mertz, Gena Anderson, Kevin Grumbach, Ed O'Neil

Date: 
Jul 2004

Central to efforts to increase access to dental care has been a focus on the supply, distribution and diversity of a workforce willing and able to provide care for underserved populations. While there are no definitive numbers, between 3 and 9 million Californians are lacking access to care or have unmet dental need. Provider supply is declining and current providers are mal-distributed, leaving many areas of the state with an inadequate dental workforce. This report evaluates the impact of the multitude of programs in California to recruit and retain oral health care providers in underserved areas in California who are serving underserved populations.