The Australian dental industry is a lucrative one. Dentists are earning high salaries, sometimes even more than medical specialists. Dental procedures are also very expensive in Australia, which could also be a reason for the high demand and pay scale of dentists. The business of dentistry is a good industry to be involved in Australia.

Australian dental industry

The Australian healthcare industry is dependent on imported medical equipment, so there is a high demand for innovative and high-quality dental products. Over 85% of medical products are imported from overseas, which is why the healthcare industry in Australia is dependent on imports. Local manufacturing only accounts for about 3% of dental products.

Australia has a government-funded healthcare scheme named Medicare. In contrast, the dental services industry is mostly privately-funded. Therefore, patients have to put in their own money for dental checkups and procedures. Approximately 50% of Australians have private health insurance that cover dental expenses.

Common traits of growth-focused practices

Here are the common features of growth-focused practices:

People and culture

Highlighted focus on learning and development

Team building skills and socializing programs

Performance and salary reviews and incentives

Offsetting increasing costs

Minimizing overhead costs

Introducing new services

Looking for alternative suppliers

Extending operating hours

Strategic priorities

Improving employee engagement

Focusing more on advertising and marketing campaigns

Adapting systems and processes for improved efficiency

Diversifying services that are provided

Digital patient experience

Incorporating new digital channels to enhance patient experience

Payments and claiming solutions

Key insights into the Australian dental industry

Here are some of the key insights into the dental industry in Australia.

Shifting practice economics

36% report lower revenues in comparison with the pandemic period. 28% expect a strong decline in the coming year.

96% report increased costs within the past year. 86% expect the same or more in the next year.

37% report lower patient appointment than pre-pandemic.

39% expect profits to decline in the year ahead.

Lifting patient demands

64% are developing new ideas to attract or retain patients.

31% plan to invest on high-quality and innovative dental equipment to provide better patient care.

30% expect to invest in marketing and sales-drive initiatives.

97% rely on word of mouth to attract patients.

Driving efficiency

55% are developing ideas to increase productivity and efficiency.

37% are planning on adapting new systems to improve efficiency.

52% expect to spend more on technology.

33% aim at reducing operational costs.

Handling talent shortages

51% are planning programs to attract or retain staff.

66% expect attracting new staff and retaining staff are both challenging.

75% say that access to staff hinders their ability to operate and grow.

78% are actively working towards building a supportive workplace culture.

The key drivers or practice economics

Statistics of the Australian Dental Association (ADA) show that one third of the population in Australia had delayed dental treatment over the past year. It is the reason why 37% of dental practices in Australia report lower patient visits compared to the time before the pandemic.

Dentists and dental practices also report of increasing costs for which the below strategies have been brought forward:

Reducing overheads

Bringing forwards new services related to dentistry

Negotiating better terms with suppliers

Regional dental practices are reporting much improved revenues and seem to be rebounding after the pandemic, with 74% reporting improves revenues. This is higher in comparison to 60% of their metropolitan counterparts.

Operational and financial performance indicators

Here is the expectation of practices in the upcoming 12 months:

18% of dental practices have seen an increase in revenue since the pandemic. More than 36% expects the revenue to increase further in the coming year.

More than double the amount of dental practices in Australia expect patient visits to increase in the year ahead.

43% expect an increase in revenue while only 32% expect profit to increase due to rising costs.

People-centered practices approach

The top-rated hurdles that keep patients from visiting dentists include the increase in cost-of-living and economic uncertainty. However, demand for dental services in Australia has increased to 70% with an increase in payroll costs up to 70% and staff retention up to 66%.

Dental practices in Australia are seeking avenues to maintain revenue, and growth-oriented practices are leading the response to the industry’s challenges. Dental practices have a heightened focus on driving efficiencies, staff recruitment, and sales and marketing.

Tactics to find and keep patients

The ADA’s annual consumer survey shows that 54% of Australians plan to visit dentists in the next 3 months and 22% in the next 3 to 12 months. It shows that patients are no longer delaying their dental visits and are focusing more on dental and oral health.

Many practices are not waiting for patients to move. Instead, they are initiating plans to attract new patients and providing quality care to existing patients. It also includes expanding the dental services that the practice is already offering.

Investment in technology and equipment

Here’s a peak into what the practice and clinical technologies or tools prioritized for investment in the next year.

Patient-experienced focused

50% of practices are planning to invest in at least one technologically developed equipment that can help serve better services to their patients.

Clinical technology-focused

63% of practices are planning to invest in at least one clinical technology-focused applications/ tools that could provide improved services to patients.

Initiatives to attract and retain staff

Here’s how dental practices in Australia are focusing on to attract and retain staff:

Nurturing a friendly and supportive workplace

Flexible working arrangements

Organizing team-building and socializing events on a regular basis

Offering attractive remuneration packages

Conducting regular performance and salary reviews

Introducing formalized bonus structure payment schemes

Undertaking health and well-being initiatives

Focusing more on continued professional learning and development activities

Diversity in dentistry

Diversity in dentistry also impacts how well the dental industry performs. Diversity in dentistry and the evolving nature of the Australian workplace has an impact on the dental industry as follows:

Responding to the market

Australian dentistry has embraced diversity not only from an ethics point of view but also from a business perspective. More dentists in Australia know how to work with the cultural change while the client base has also become diverse. Dentists are prepared to meet the needs of different cultures in order to provide excellent services to customers and to retain them. Dentists in Australia must adapt to this culture and know how to work with their client base. Changes have also occurred in terms of the ethical and cultural backgrounds of the dental workforce, where more diversity is readily accepted.

Diversity in dentistry is also:

A good move for business

Providing leadership and governance

A family-friendly approach

Medfuture are the pioneers in medical recruitment in Australia. We take medical recruitment to another level by ensuring that dental practices have only the best dentists that can provides improved care for patients.

The Medfuture job board is constantly updated with the latest dentistry jobs in Australia. Visit our website to find out the latest medical jobs across all states and suburbs in Australia. We continuously work to bring forth talented and skilled medical specialists to drive the healthcare industry in Australia.