Practice Ownership Intentions of Pediatric Dentistry Residents and the Influence of Educational Debt

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the interest in practice ownership among pediatric dentistry residents and influencing factors, particularly educational debt. Methods: An invitation to participate in an anonymous survey was sent to 933 pediatric dentistry residents training in the United States in the spring of 2020. Results: The survey response rate was 32.9 percent. Of the respondents, 61.2 percent reported being extremely or very interested in practice ownership and 49.8 percent anticipated becoming a practice owner within five years of graduation. An inverse relationship was seen between one's level of comfort in assuming a business loan to acquire a practice and having an educational debt burden of $400,000 or greater (P=0.002). Practice management preparation was the most common concern related to future practice ownership. Those feeling completely, very, or moderately prepared to manage a dental practice were over 40 percent more likely to be extremely or very interested in practice ownership than were those who felt slightly or not at all prepared (P<0.001). Conclusions: There appears to be broad interest in practice ownership among pediatric dentistry residents. Relatively high educational debt may negatively influence future practice ownership, but it may be less influential than other factors.