Introduction to dental public health
In dental public health, your work may involve assessing the oral health needs of a group or population rather than individual patients. You will be responsible for developing and implementing oral health promotion strategies, advising dental or healthcare commissioners on service planning, and promoting oral health at the population level rather than in a clinical setting. This role often involves working within large systems of interdisciplinary networks rather than as part of a dental team, providing evidence for and influencing dental and oral health policies.
Specialty training in dental public health is available, and there are also opportunities for you to complete training in general public health. Additionally, you may work as a non-specialist in local authority public health teams. Many dentists who work clinically also engage in activities that can be classed as public health or dental public health.