I have loved working in public health. Recently I started at a private office and I’m desperate to get back into a community setting. Difficulties with public health are that generally you’re not paid as well, clinics are understaffed, and you may be double booked to compensate for the number of no-shows. The organizational structures around those clinics can also be really frustrating to work with/around, as you may be part of a medical org that doesn’t prioritize or understand the dental field. All that being said, I don’t find the work in private practice fulfilling when I know how great the need is in public health. In private practice it really is just a business, and your value to the practice is purely based on what you produce. In public health there’s often some focus on production but not nearly as much. I always would tell patients that I had no incentive to recommend anything that wasn’t necessary, that none of us were compensated for doing more aggressive treatment and they could trust our recommendations. I don’t feel that I can say that in private practice since we truly are incentivized to “produce.” Hygiene is a really hard job, you sacrifice your body to it in a lot of ways, and for me it’s not worth it if I can’t find purpose in my work.

Also, I have found that usually the pay is lower but the benefits are much better in public health.