Dentist as a Career: Benefits & Hazards

Dentist as a career in Australia, the potential earning power of a role in the dental industry can make this a particularly attractive career choice.

A Dentist as a career earns an average salary of AU$97,065 per year. Most people move on to other jobs if they have more than 20 years of experience in this career. So, if you are planning to move to Australia for your dentistry career then it is one of the best options for you which will give you the highest growth in your career.

You’re Looking For Flexibility Dentist as a Career

The ability to have flexible hours is a major advantage of working as a cosmetic dentist in a superficial city like Brisbane means a lot of revenue. This flexibility is particularly appealing to working mothers looking to balance a career with childcare responsibilities. 

For many women, the family-friendly nature of working in a dental practice makes this a more appealing option than a typical 9-5 job. What’s more, the potential high average salaries associated with dentistry can mean that even working part-time can still provide women with a reasonable income.

Dentist as a Career Benefits

Good Income There’s no question this career does allow for a solid, stable income, and there is potential to earn a phenomenal income. But don’t be fooled it does come with a price. It is an extremely challenging job with a lot of responsibility. Don’t expect it to be easy money. Are you willing to work your booty off to earn that income? If not, this is the wrong career.

• Autonomy – Be your boss. Make the decisions you want to make. No need to answer anyone. But you hold all the financial risk, you have to make the tough decisions, and the buck stops with you. Are you willing to take on that type of responsibility?
• Respect – Dentists are generally highly trusted and respected. Who doesn’t want that?
• People – If you like to work with people, you’ll certainly get a lot of people’s time. It is a very caring profession, and the relationships are the best part of it. Unlike some other businesses, it isn’t all about the money.
• Variety – It’s always challenging and interesting. No two days are ever the same. When you think you’ve learned all there is to learn, you’ll see something new. Do you deal well with change and constant learning? If you want life to be black and white, this isn’t for you.
• Excitement – You wouldn’t expect it to be action-packed, but it’s not your average desk job pushing paper around. There’s never a dull moment. Whether it’s a kooky patient, an assistant who calls in sick, or an emergency root canal, you will not get bored making it big with your own clinic in Sydney. The day will fly by, and there will be no chance to sit around, bored, staring at the clock waiting for hours to pass you by.
• Great hours – You can generally set your hours. Part-time is always a possibility, allowing you to maintain a balanced lifestyle. It’s also a great career for women who want to have a family.
• Warm Fuzzies – Yes, folks, the warm fuzzies are real. You get a chance to help others and even change lives. Your job is to help make people smile not a bad goal in my book.
• Solutions – Every day you get the chance to offer real, concrete solutions and fix things for people.
• Creativity – People may not realise that there is a lot of creativity to be a dentist. On some levels, it’s very pragmatic and scientific, but the actual work is like carving or sculpting. It is an art. You also have many opportunities to use your creativity for problem-solving.
• Demand – This is true. People always need dental services. It seems there is a lot of competition out there now, but if you find your niche, the patients will come.

Dentist as a Career Hazards

Many dental care professionals are at risk for occupational exposure to a variety of hazardous.

• High Responsibility – You are in charge of someone’s health. Administering anesthesia, prescribing drugs, and essentially performing surgery on teeth are all great responsibilities that are to be taken seriously. When things go wrong, which they do even when you do everything properly it’s your responsibility.
• Stress – With high responsibility comes high stress. Not only is someone’s health in your hands, but this is a customer service industry. You have to keep the customer happy. If you do the right thing, this will generally work itself out, but sometimes there are customers that can never be pleased no matter what you do. The pressure is on you to do your best work in a limited amount of time, keep the customer happy, and manage your business.
• Call – Being on call on the weekends. Some people don’t mind this, but I hated it. For me, my weekends were a break from my stressful week, and this “violated” that personal time. I liked my job so much more when I didn’t have to be on call, but you must accept it because it is part of the job description.
• Challenging Patients – No matter how great you want your work to be, you are not the only determining factor here. If a challenging patient makes it difficult for you to do your best work, chances are the results might not be up to your expectations.
• Unpredictability – There’s never a dull moment. Whether it’s a kooky patient, an assistant who calls in sick, or an emergency root canal the day will fly by. Recognise this point from the Excitement point in the “benefits” section? While it certainly keeps you on your toes, these unpredictable events can make a day really challenging, really long, and really tiring.
• High Intensity – Expect intense, close contact with many people throughout the day. Working with people can be a “benefit”, but spending a lot of time 6 inches from another person’s face can get exhausting.
• The Yuck Factor – You might have to deal with bad breath, stinky people, and some really gross mouths. When you’re used to practicing, the gross-out factor is pretty rare, but you’ve almost thrown up in your mouth once or twice in the 10 years you’ve practiced.
• Surprises – The textbooks seem to be in absolutes, but in nature, some things are out of our control. You may do everything by the book, but the results still don’t work outright. Luckily, there are a few pleasant surprises too.
• Dental Insurance – Fortunately, we haven’t taken the same road that medicine has, but it is still a driving force in dental practice today. Insurance coverage is poor at best, and in the end, this leaves both the patients and the dentists unhappy. Dentists struggle to get paid for their work, and patients get pissed at the dentists when their insurance won’t cover a procedure. Insurance companies are even lowering the fees a dentist can charge while prices and overhead are increasing.
• Physical Stress and Risks – Dentistry can take a serious toll on your body. You are trying to see and work in a very small space and often have to contort your body for long periods of time. The constant high-pitched buzz of the dental drill may lead to hearing loss. And chances are good you will accidentally poke yourself with a needle or dental instrument, potentially leaving you exposed to a blood-borne illness. The body aches can be counteracted with daily exercise and splurges such as massages. The potential of hearing loss can be prevented with earplugs. And the risks of getting HIV or Hepatitis are extremely low, but when an accidental prick happens, it can lead to some unnerving emotions.
• The Haters – And let’s not forget patients that hate the dentist but still come to you anyway. Remember those warm fuzzies we’ve mentioned above? Well, they sometimes disappear in the shuffle. We often have 9 patient experiences in a day that give us the warm fuzzies, but the one bad apple makes us forget all the good ones. It is possible, but it takes work to let go of the negative and embrace the positive.