Understanding the characteristics of Colorado’s dentists, including their practice patterns and perspectives on access, is essential to determining whether the oral health needs of Coloradans currently are being met and likely to be met in the future. To that end, in 2008 the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) contracted with the Colorado Health Institute (CHI) to survey dentists practicing in rural areas of the state. In 2009, as an extension of this work, CHI conducted a workforce survey of dentists practicing in urban areas of the state.

In both cases, dentists were asked to provide their demographic and practice characteristics, educational background and opinions on various topics relevant to public policy such as the level of care provided to Colorado’s underserved populations including low-income adults and children enrolled in Medicaid and CHP+. This report presents the findings from these surveys and provides comparison, where applicable, between urban and rural practicing dentists.

Many Coloradans have difficulty getting access to the oral health care they need, not only in rural areas but also in urban locations. In order to address this problem, policymakers at both the state and local levels need a better understanding of the training, practice and reimbursement issues related to recruiting and retaining dentists throughout Colorado’s urban communities.

The Colorado Health Institute (CHI) was asked by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment’s Oral Health Program to survey Colorado’s non-rural dentists to provide a more comprehensive picture of the state’s dental workforce. The survey was mailed in July 2009 to a stratified random sample of 887 dentists in urban and suburban areas of the state.