‘Dentistry is an excellent career for women’

Contributor

March 14, 2023

Risé L. Martin, DDS, has practiced dentistry for more than 35 years in Bandera County. Against all odds, then and now, she established her private practice shortly after graduating from the UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry in 1985 as a single mother in her thirties with twin girls in grade school.

According to research, women only accounted for 23.7% of dental school graduates in the U.S. during the mid-1980s and attitudes toward women in dentistry were much different than today.

“There was a stigma that women dentists would not be an asset in the workforce because they would stop practicing to have children and then to raise their children,” Martin said. “I immediately opened my own private practice because I felt that would allow me flexibility for my family and financial comfort.”

Last March, the American Dental Association’s (ADA) Health Policy Institute reported data on the changing dentist workforce. Based on their report, the dental profession is expected to reach gender parity by 2040, assuming female dental student enrollment continues to average near 52% nationwide.

Enrollment demographics in the School of Dentistry have remained steady for the past four years with more female applicants applying for and accepting admission to dental school than male applicants.

The San Antonio District Dental Society also reported that licensed dentists who identify as female had increased by 102% throughout the 14-county San Antonio District in December 2022, compared to the same time 11 years ago.

In addition to purely contributing to the workforce, the ADA’s data also showed that female dentists have a higher tendency to treat Medicaid patients, as well as be affiliated with dental service organizations.

Martin, who herself serves on a number of dental organizations, notably as the immediate past president of the International College of Dentists’ USA section, has a unique view both locally and abroad. She believes these choices by a growing female workforce demonstrate their high value and leadership in the profession.

“It has been exciting to see so many younger women in leadership positions breaking the glass ceilings,” she said. “In recent years, our Texas Dental Association has had more women in leadership positions than men. Women have been determined to sit at the table with the gents, and are! It is exhilarating to see the new ideas and innovations developed and implemented by women leaders.”

“I am always blessed to be surrounded by young women dentists and dental students,” Martin added. “Dentistry is an excellent career for women.”

During National Women’s History Month, the School of Dentistry recognizes and extends its gratitude to the women, past and present, who have been active in all forms of dentistry.