Quebec dental manpower and demand for dental care from 1985-1988

The rapid growth in the number of practising dentists is a major concern of the dental profession in industrialized countries. Three surveys conducted in Quebec in 1971 (N = 1552), 1985 (N = 840) and 1988 (N = 1059) examined the growth in dental manpower and demand for dental care between 1985 and 1988 and made a comparison with the 1971-1985 period. On average, the yearly increase in the number of active dentists was 4.2 per cent between 1971 and 1985 whereas the yearly increase between 1985 and 1988 was only 2.5 per cent. The percentage of the population using dental services annually was 47 per cent in 1988, compared to 51 per cent in 1985. An age-specific comparison with the United States showed that the proportion of Quebec adults visiting the dentist within the last 12 months varied between 30 per cent and 63 per cent and that of the U.S. between 41 per cent and 61 per cent. Thus, as the number of active dentists continues to grow, albeit at a slower rate, the demand for dental care appears to have reached a plateau and has attained the American level for adults under 50 years of age.