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Why do dentists earn more than Doctors?
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brokenangel
Most dentists do purelly private work, most doctors do atleast some NHS work. If you can find a doctor doing purelly private work then im sure he would be earning the same as the average dentist if not slightly more. I.e its most likely better to compare USA doctors earning to our dentists as that is a similar system to dental care in this country
This is a lie. There aren't enough people in the UK who would pay for private dental treatment, so I don't know where you got that assumption from.
It's common for dentists to do a mixture of NHS and private patients, but most don't purely do private.
They don't earn more than doctors.
Yes there is a shortage in dentists but that doesn't mean they earn more that docs!
Yes there is a shortage in dentists but that doesn't mean they earn more that docs!
iamwhoiam17
They don't earn more than doctors.
Yes there is a shortage in dentists but that doesn't mean they earn more that docs!
Yes there is a shortage in dentists but that doesn't mean they earn more that docs!
The question is though do we take the current top earnings, or do we try and predict career earnings for someone going into dentistry now vs someone going into medicine.
The future so far as I can see is far more rosy for the dentists.
Woody.
Many people working in business have to work more hours than doctors do. A friend of mine works in a law firm and has been coming back home at about 2am after a full day, and then needs to get up at 6am. I know this will also hold true for doctors some of the time, but I'm trying to illustrate that hours aren't everything either. Conditions are subjective, there are bad hospitals, I imagine there are bad dental practices too. Using my previous example, firemen have to be on call along with other emergency services and dealing with people dying is something you were fully aware of when you chose a career in medicine, I don't see why you should be paid more for something you know will happen.
Really, my point is, if you want to become a doctor, become a doctor. It doesn't matter that dentists earn more, unless you are looking for a profession that just gets you loaded. People earn hundreds of thousands for running around a pitch for 90 minutes, the way people are paid isn't exactly fair but if you really want to be a doctor it shouldn't really have an influence.
Really, my point is, if you want to become a doctor, become a doctor. It doesn't matter that dentists earn more, unless you are looking for a profession that just gets you loaded. People earn hundreds of thousands for running around a pitch for 90 minutes, the way people are paid isn't exactly fair but if you really want to be a doctor it shouldn't really have an influence.
That I agree with. I was playing devils advocate.
Woody.
Why shouldn't they earn more than doctors? Policemen, firemen and even, arguably, you could say that lollipop ladies save lives, but they are paid pittance. More lives you save =/= amount of pay.
Because a lollipop lady doesn't study for years and years. Wait until you start medical school my friend, see the amount of work and then pull the 'why shouldn't they earn more than doctors?' crap. No-one's saying they don't do excellent jobs, they do and they all seem lovely (I've never met a nasty lollipop lady yet). But put into context the work you do as a doctor, the unsociable hours etc, and you should realise that doctors deserve every last penny they get.
Scrubby
Whether Doctors should earn more or not is irrelevant. Because despite Dentistry allegedly being more lucrative Medicine is more popular and competitive. Why? I think you can work that one out for yourself.
I'll admit I'm probably not the target of that post, but I really can't work the answer out.
Alex D
Because a lollipop lady doesn't study for years and years. Wait until you start medical school my friend, see the amount of work and then pull the 'why shouldn't they earn more than doctors?' crap. No-one's saying they don't do excellent jobs, they do and they all seem lovely (I've never met a nasty lollipop lady yet). But put into context the work you do as a doctor, the unsociable hours etc, and you should realise that doctors deserve every last penny they get.
No offence, but that post seems to imply that you don't really want to study for several years and work the hours that doctors work. Medicine is a career you've chosen to embark upon, so I'd hope you'd enjoy the aspects of the career. Don't get me wrong, there is no doubt that doctors should earn a lot of money for the effort they put in, but I think it's wrong to compare what a doctor does to other professions and complain about the salary.
Woody.
No offence, but that post seems to imply that you don't really want to study for several years and work the hours that doctors work. Medicine is a career you've chosen to embark upon, so I'd hope you'd enjoy the aspects of the career. Don't get me wrong, there is no doubt that doctors should earn a lot of money for the effort they put in, but I think it's wrong to compare what a doctor does to other professions and complain about the salary.
I wouldn't be here if I didn't want to study medicine. It's the fact you came out with something that you have no idea of yet. I've just had the first week of lectures and have plenty of work. My point is doctors deserve what they get because they work bloody hard. Surely you also compared medicine to other professions when you mentioned lollipop ladies? Pot kettle black much?
Woody.
No offence, but that post seems to imply that you don't really want to study for several years and work the hours that doctors work. Medicine is a career you've chosen to embark upon, so I'd hope you'd enjoy the aspects of the career. Don't get me wrong, there is no doubt that doctors should earn a lot of money for the effort they put in, but I think it's wrong to compare what a doctor does to other professions and complain about the salary.
wtf? where did you get that implication from? he is just stating the fact that doctors have large amounts of material to study during their 5 years in med school, and they build on their knowledge until the day they die compared to lolly pop ladies who surely don't have to study and work as hard yet they do make a difference to people's lives. Doctors do work unsociable hours most of the time and thats a fact but how you got the idea that hedoesn't wanna become a doctor I have no clue.
tbh, i'd rather have a job which pays a reasonable amount whereby I enjoy every day I step into work rather than a job with a 6-figure wage whereby I consider every waking moment on the job as torture.
jeremybag
you do know the difference between a partner and a salaried gp dont you? partners, earn 50% more than that, and sometimes upto 3x as much if they are a dispensing practice.
Oh, ****, where's my popcorn..
I'll give you a more neutral reason why dentists earn more.
1) When we graduate we require one more year of training to be fully qualified and self sufficient. Medicine is different. A medicine graduate can't practice unsupervised (foundation/core years etc)
2) Dentists are responsible for decontamination of their instruments. This includes the design, purchase, maintenance and operation of their local decontamination unit. Doctors have no responsibility for this (normally everything is single use OR carted away to a central sterilization department)
3) Dentists have a managerial role in that they employ staff from their wage. A dental nurses wage is paid for by the dentist employing her, even as a partner in a practice.
4) Danger money - operating a drill rotating at 500000 rpm for the majority of your day is probably going to be more dangerous than a lot of medical undertakings in your average day. All dental procedures carry a lot of risk for patient and dentist. If you think about it, all dentistry procedures are classed as at least 'semi-critical' in terms of risk of cross infection, so a dentist with a BBV would be out of work, but a doctor could still practice. This reflects both the nature of the work, how high the risk of cross infection is (and thus loss of livelihood). Doctors by nature think more, and dentists 'do' more. As in, get their hands really dirty all day. It's not every day that a general doctor (if we're also talking about general dental practitioners) will have a flap raised, taking a bur to a bone.
5) It's different in England now (not in Scotland) but the NHS pay scheme for a dentist here dictates that if you do a filling you get x amount. It's not really salaried as such. It depends on how much work you do. NHS dentists normally see around 30-35 patients a day. Not easy.
6) Plus, the NHS really need us! Why else would they have paid me £16k as an undergrad to agree to do NHS work for 5 years
You can charge £1k for a bridge private if you're good enough. You set your fees. Most dentists don't do private, that's a lot of ****. Most dentists do NHS then do private where the NHS restricts them. i.e. a white filling on a back tooth is not allowed.
This is NOT a doctors vs dentists thing. The jobs could not be more different. And that's why they're paid differently, because they aren't different. Any budding young doctors should realise that you need dentists to sign off that patients are ok to go ahead with treatments such as chemo or bisphosphonates. And any young dentists should realise they need doctors to check INRs, liver function etc to go ahead with extractions and many other areas. You're both healthcare professionals, and you both need each other, no one 'works harder' than the other.
1) When we graduate we require one more year of training to be fully qualified and self sufficient. Medicine is different. A medicine graduate can't practice unsupervised (foundation/core years etc)
2) Dentists are responsible for decontamination of their instruments. This includes the design, purchase, maintenance and operation of their local decontamination unit. Doctors have no responsibility for this (normally everything is single use OR carted away to a central sterilization department)
3) Dentists have a managerial role in that they employ staff from their wage. A dental nurses wage is paid for by the dentist employing her, even as a partner in a practice.
4) Danger money - operating a drill rotating at 500000 rpm for the majority of your day is probably going to be more dangerous than a lot of medical undertakings in your average day. All dental procedures carry a lot of risk for patient and dentist. If you think about it, all dentistry procedures are classed as at least 'semi-critical' in terms of risk of cross infection, so a dentist with a BBV would be out of work, but a doctor could still practice. This reflects both the nature of the work, how high the risk of cross infection is (and thus loss of livelihood). Doctors by nature think more, and dentists 'do' more. As in, get their hands really dirty all day. It's not every day that a general doctor (if we're also talking about general dental practitioners) will have a flap raised, taking a bur to a bone.
5) It's different in England now (not in Scotland) but the NHS pay scheme for a dentist here dictates that if you do a filling you get x amount. It's not really salaried as such. It depends on how much work you do. NHS dentists normally see around 30-35 patients a day. Not easy.
6) Plus, the NHS really need us! Why else would they have paid me £16k as an undergrad to agree to do NHS work for 5 years
You can charge £1k for a bridge private if you're good enough. You set your fees. Most dentists don't do private, that's a lot of ****. Most dentists do NHS then do private where the NHS restricts them. i.e. a white filling on a back tooth is not allowed.This is NOT a doctors vs dentists thing. The jobs could not be more different. And that's why they're paid differently, because they aren't different. Any budding young doctors should realise that you need dentists to sign off that patients are ok to go ahead with treatments such as chemo or bisphosphonates. And any young dentists should realise they need doctors to check INRs, liver function etc to go ahead with extractions and many other areas. You're both healthcare professionals, and you both need each other, no one 'works harder' than the other.
Magnanimity
I'll give you a more neutral reason why dentists earn more.
1) When we graduate we require one more year of training to be fully qualified and self sufficient. Medicine is different. A medicine graduate can't practice unsupervised (foundation/core years etc)
2) Dentists are responsible for decontamination of their instruments. This includes the design, purchase, maintenance and operation of their local decontamination unit. Doctors have no responsibility for this (normally everything is single use OR carted away to a central sterilization department)
3) Dentists have a managerial role in that they employ staff from their wage. A dental nurses wage is paid for by the dentist employing her, even as a partner in a practice.
4) Danger money - operating a drill rotating at 500000 rpm for the majority of your day is probably going to be more dangerous than a lot of medical undertakings in your average day. All dental procedures carry a lot of risk for patient and dentist. If you think about it, all dentistry procedures are classed as at least 'semi-critical' in terms of risk of cross infection, so a dentist with a BBV would be out of work, but a doctor could still practice. This reflects both the nature of the work, how high the risk of cross infection is (and thus loss of livelihood). Doctors by nature think more, and dentists 'do' more. As in, get their hands really dirty all day. It's not every day that a general doctor (if we're also talking about general dental practitioners) will have a flap raised, taking a bur to a bone.
5) It's different in England now (not in Scotland) but the NHS pay scheme for a dentist here dictates that if you do a filling you get x amount. It's not really salaried as such. It depends on how much work you do. NHS dentists normally see around 30-35 patients a day. Not easy.
6) Plus, the NHS really need us! Why else would they have paid me £16k as an undergrad to agree to do NHS work for 5 years You can charge £1k for a bridge private if you're good enough. You set your fees. Most dentists don't do private, that's a lot of ****. Most dentists do NHS then do private where the NHS restricts them. i.e. a white filling on a back tooth is not allowed.
This is NOT a doctors vs dentists thing. The jobs could not be more different. And that's why they're paid differently, because they aren't different. Any budding young doctors should realise that you need dentists to sign off that patients are ok to go ahead with treatments such as chemo or bisphosphonates. And any young dentists should realise they need doctors to check INRs, liver function etc to go ahead with extractions and many other areas. You're both healthcare professionals, and you both need each other, no one 'works harder' than the other.
1) When we graduate we require one more year of training to be fully qualified and self sufficient. Medicine is different. A medicine graduate can't practice unsupervised (foundation/core years etc)
2) Dentists are responsible for decontamination of their instruments. This includes the design, purchase, maintenance and operation of their local decontamination unit. Doctors have no responsibility for this (normally everything is single use OR carted away to a central sterilization department)
3) Dentists have a managerial role in that they employ staff from their wage. A dental nurses wage is paid for by the dentist employing her, even as a partner in a practice.
4) Danger money - operating a drill rotating at 500000 rpm for the majority of your day is probably going to be more dangerous than a lot of medical undertakings in your average day. All dental procedures carry a lot of risk for patient and dentist. If you think about it, all dentistry procedures are classed as at least 'semi-critical' in terms of risk of cross infection, so a dentist with a BBV would be out of work, but a doctor could still practice. This reflects both the nature of the work, how high the risk of cross infection is (and thus loss of livelihood). Doctors by nature think more, and dentists 'do' more. As in, get their hands really dirty all day. It's not every day that a general doctor (if we're also talking about general dental practitioners) will have a flap raised, taking a bur to a bone.
5) It's different in England now (not in Scotland) but the NHS pay scheme for a dentist here dictates that if you do a filling you get x amount. It's not really salaried as such. It depends on how much work you do. NHS dentists normally see around 30-35 patients a day. Not easy.
6) Plus, the NHS really need us! Why else would they have paid me £16k as an undergrad to agree to do NHS work for 5 years
You can charge £1k for a bridge private if you're good enough. You set your fees. Most dentists don't do private, that's a lot of ****. Most dentists do NHS then do private where the NHS restricts them. i.e. a white filling on a back tooth is not allowed.This is NOT a doctors vs dentists thing. The jobs could not be more different. And that's why they're paid differently, because they aren't different. Any budding young doctors should realise that you need dentists to sign off that patients are ok to go ahead with treatments such as chemo or bisphosphonates. And any young dentists should realise they need doctors to check INRs, liver function etc to go ahead with extractions and many other areas. You're both healthcare professionals, and you both need each other, no one 'works harder' than the other.
beautifully said
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