Trends in the Dental Surgeon Workforce in Brazil 2007-2014: a Time Series Study Using Data from the National Registry of Health Services

Objective: the objective was to analyze trends in the dental surgeon workforce in Brazil between 2007 and 2014.

Methods: this is a time series study using data from the Brazilian National Register of Health Establishments and the Brazilian National Institute of Geography and Statistics. Prais-Winsten generalized linear regression was used to estimate time trends and to calculate the annual percent change in the dental surgeon workforce over the period.

Results: the number of dental surgeons working as general practitioners and as specialists grew on average by 12.7% and 17.3% per annum, respectively; dental surgeon workforce expansion in relation to general practitioners (0.5%) and specialists (11.6%) was lower in the public sector, compared to the private sector (24.5% and 30.3%, respectively).

Conclusion: the number of dental surgeons in Brazil is high, although they are not equally distributed between both sectors. This may imply barriers to dental care access in Brazil.