Experts Urge More Black Dentists

Photo credit: Black College Wire Cleveland Cavaliers starting forward Eric Williams says he did not fix his teeth until he was 31.

One way to improve the oral health of African Americans is to increase the number of African American dentists, since they are more likely to treat people of color and poor people, a new study says.

The report states that African American dentists are more likely to treat other African Americans, Medicaid patients and the uninsured. African American dentists reported that 61.8 percent of their patients were black in the American Dental Association's 1996 Dentist Profile Survey.

Only 3.3 percent of the dentists in the United States are African-American, according to the report.

“Dentistry is a wonderful profession,” said Dr. Ronald E. Inge, associate executive director of the division of dental practice at the American Dental Association. “It’s a profession of giving and self-satisfaction. That’s what we need to portray.”

The 2003 Institute of Medicine report "Unequal Treatment" concludes that differential treatment might affect the care received by African-American men if they rely on public coverage.

According to research cited in the report, African Americans are less likely to recall having discussions about alternative treatments to tooth removal. The proportion of missing teeth as a result of tooth decay is 1.5 times greater for African American men when compared to white men, it said.

The experts who contributed to the report said they believed patients were more likely to “communicate well” with individuals who shared similar backgrounds and experiences.

Of the dentists educated at historically black colleges and universities, only 53 percent of them are black, according to a 2000 survey. The study did not examine why there were not more African Americans trained to be dentists at these schools.

"We have to realize that financial barriers play a critical role in all the professions, not just the dental profession," said Dr. Gail C. Christopher, director of the Health Policy Institute for the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies.

Eric Williams, a starting forward for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association, has created the Believe in Me Foundation to provide inner-city children with dental care and to recruit African American dentists.

“In the inner city where I come from, the dream was always to become an athlete and nowadays a rapper,” Williams said. “It’s even more difficult to become a basketball player than a dentist. Dentistry is nothing but hard work.”

As a member of the panel presenting the report, Williams shared painful childhood memories of having crooked teeth. He said he believes he can use his status as basketball player to educate young African Americans about the importance of oral health.

“I have that entertainment side to it and they will want to at least see me,” said Williams, who did not fix his teeth until he was 31. “Upon seeing me, if I can reach out to at least three or four, then I have done my job.”

Inge said that the ADA was developing programs and providing mentors to encourage African American males to pursue dentistry and put the African American dentist "in a more positive light."

"This is something that hasn't been done before," said Inge, who is African American. "We have a responsibility and obligation to be role models."

Strategies discussed in the report for improving oral health include: reducing financial barriers to oral health, developing outreach strategies that specifically target older men and expanding the research and data collection efforts by gender and race.

Titus Ledbetter III is a student at Hampton University.

Posted June 24, 2004