Do Dentists Really Make $500k/year?

[yappy]

Especially when they don’t have a clue what a pager sounds like at 2am because they are sleeping, much less what someone looks like with half their face broken or what a neck looks like dissected to the carotid sheath. There is a reason OS is compensated so well in private practice, they pay their dues for 4-6+ more years after dental school.

Not a SINGLE oms I know does anything but remove teeth, biopsy, and place implants, and I know many of them. Your pay has nothing to do with a pager at 2AM or a carotid sheath. People pay you for the job that you a actually do, not the detour you took because of inefficiencies in your training. If you don't understand that, your education has failed you.

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[rotichawal]

Not a SINGLE oms I know does anything but remove teeth, biopsy, and place implants, and I know many of them. Your pay has nothing to do with a pager at 2AM or a carotid sheath. People pay you for the job that you a actually do, not the detour you took because of inefficiencies in your training. If you don't understand that, your education has failed you.

lmao triggered

 

[yappy]

lmao triggered

Just keeping it real.

 

[somefuturedoc]

Just keeping it real.

“Real” in a very loose sense

 

[yappy]

“Real” in a very loose sense

Please let me know where I'm in error. Is it your suggestion that the majority of OMS, or even a plurality, make most of their income from non-dental alveolar surgery inside hospitals? Is dental alveolar surgery a small portion OMS practice in terms of revenue? Are most employment opportunities OR based instead of clinic based? I have not seen any evidence to support this. Hence, my response to OMS doing carotid sheathe surgeries and 2AM hospital call to justify their income. It’s hubris.

Why do you attempt to obfuscate what is true about OMS? Unfortunately this is really common. I will not pretend to understand your motivations, but it is important to be truthful so that people who are interested in the filed have an accurate view what they'll actually do.

 

[somefuturedoc]

Please let me know where I'm in error. Is it your suggestion that the majority of OMS, or even a plurality, make most of their income from non-dental alveolar surgery inside hospitals? Is dental alveolar surgery a small portion OMS practice in terms of revenue? Are most employment opportunities for OMS OR based instead of clinic based? I have not seen any evidence to support any of this. Hence, my response to OMS doing carotid sheathe surgeries and a 2AM hospital call.

Your comment above is an attempt to obfuscate what is true about the OMS field. Unfortunately this is really common. I will not pretend to understand your motivations, but it is important to be truthful so that people who are interested in the filed have an accurate view what they'll actually do.

Nowhere did I dispute the lucrativeness of private practice. But yet, every surgeon I know does vastly more than what you listed, including time in the OR. Anecdotes are anecdotes. I'm suggesting that your limited view of the few surgeons you know is not the absolute rule and should not be spread as "reality" every time someone suggests the contrary.

It seems to be your mission to disparage and condescend about OMFS on almost every thread. Not sure why you feel the need.

 

[yappy]

Nowhere did I dispute the lucrativeness of private practice. But yet, every surgeon I know does vastly more than what you listed, including time in the OR. Anecdotes are anecdotes. I'm suggesting that your limited view of the few surgeons you know is not the absolute rule and should not be spread as "reality" every time someone suggests the contrary.

It seems to be your mission to disparage and condescend about OMFS on almost every thread. Not sure why you feel the need.

More obfuscation.

My response was to the poster who suggested that doing carotid artery surgeries, and 2AM call, justified him being paid well in private practice, which is primarily dental alveolar surgery. I do not mean to disparage or condescend. I think OMS earn their income and there is nothing deficient with their discipline.

 

[bracketbuster68]

Nowhere did I dispute the lucrativeness of private practice. But yet, every surgeon I know does vastly more than what you listed, including time in the OR. Anecdotes are anecdotes. I'm suggesting that your limited view of the few surgeons you know is not the absolute rule and should not be spread as "reality" every time someone suggests the contrary.

It seems to be your mission to disparage and condescend about OMFS on almost every thread. Not sure why you feel the need.

Are you a resident/attending at a program or graduated in pp?

 

[nopain1234]

Really less stress? Physicians work terrible and long hours, and most of them will never own their own practice like dentists. I own my own practice, come in on time or late (stress free) and leave at 430 pm daily. Work stops there, i'm not on call like physicians .

I love how the grass is always greener

 

[amali]

More obfuscation.

My response was to the poster who suggested that doing carotid artery surgeries, and 2AM call, justified him being paid well in private practice, which is primarily dental alveolar surgery. I do not mean to disparage or condescend. I think OMS earn their income and there is nothing deficient with their discipline.

Yappy has had questionable comments about OMFS for a while. I generally do not care and just hope the younger population listens to people actually in the field.

Also, I have a feeling there may have been an attempt to get into OMFS at some point, but was unsuccessful.

Triggered.

 

[schmoob]

It’s official! Walmart sent me an email and is very interested in me. $180K-$200K plus bonus!

 

[deleted1047421]

Yappy has had questionable comments about OMFS for a while. I generally do not care and just hope the younger population listens to people actually in the field.

Also, I have a feeling there may have been an attempt to get into OMFS at some point, but was unsuccessful.

Triggered.

Yappy needs to refrain from being a JD.

 

[bergus95]

It’s official! Walmart sent me an email and is very interested in me. $180K-$200K plus bonus!

Please screenshot

 

[schmoob]

Please screenshot

It happened my man.

 

[yappy]

Yappy has had questionable comments about OMFS for a while. I generally do not care and just hope the younger population listens to people actually in the field.

Also, I have a feeling there may have been an attempt to get into OMFS at some point, but was unsuccessful.

Triggered.

Denying that oms practice is mostly dental alveolar is like denying general dentistry is mostly operative dentistry. It’s odd… and I think it’s you that has the complex if you want to mislead others into believing that.

I stand by my original statement, oms don’t often do carotid artery surgery in practice practice.

 

[D1Bound]

Denying that oms practice is mostly dental alveolar is like denying general dentistry is mostly operative dentistry. It’s odd… and I think it’s you that has the complex if you want to mislead others into believing that.

I stand by my original statement, oms don’t often do carotid artery surgery in practice practice.

So OMS make millions in their prime doing TnT bread and butter, then when the kids grow up, they may dip into academics to throw some fibulas and boss some trauma to still feel like they "have it" ?

 

[2TH MVR]

It’s official! Walmart sent me an email and is very interested in me. $180K-$200K plus bonus!

You've arrived.
All that hard work has finally paid off.

 

[nopain1234]

Walmart now has dental offices?

 

[thetoothguy]

Kind of an inaccurate statement to say a GP doesn't know what it's like to have their pager go off at 2am. Some of us did residencies that required on-call hours with pagers that went off at 2am. However, I'll have you know OMFS has no idea what it's like to have their pager go off and then make someone else's pager go off. The sheer skill required in the art of referring is one that takes extensive time, patience and practice that is not taught in OMFS programs. Page someone else? OMFS couldn't fathom such a thing. They're pagers are probably not even meant to page someone else - they have that function disabled just so they're only receiving and acting. I mean, the thumb-work alone to operate such a critical piece of equipment to get a specialist's attention at an hour that only you and Jesus are awake in, is a skill only a few of us, mostly general dentists, will ever be able to master. (This was written with satirical intent. Add lol's where appropriate)

 

[Ali527]

I have heard from numerous family members that I should pursue dentistry. They say it is a 9-5 job where you make $500k a year with a stress-free life. Is this true? Would I have to open my own practice in the middle of nowhere to reach this income? They make it seem as if I will live this life in my mid 30's, which I feel is highly unlikely. I do want to become a dentist because of the ability to help people, but I was a bit hesitant seeing the insane tuition for dental school. I was under the impression that dentists made 2-300k, from which a massive chunk would be taken for student loan tuition for the first ten years. I expect to be in 600-700k of debt once I would exit dental school

I have heard from numerous family members that I should pursue dentistry. They say it is a 9-5 job where you make $500k a year with a stress-free life. Is this true? Would I have to open my own practice in the middle of nowhere to reach this income? They make it seem as if I will live this life in my mid 30's, which I feel is highly unlikely. I do want to become a dentist because of the ability to help people, but I was a bit hesitant seeing the insane tuition for dental school. I was under the impression that dentists made 2-300k, from which a massive chunk would be taken for student loan tuition for the first ten years. I expect to be in 600-700k of debt once I would exit dental school.

500k....200k....150k....100k.....they are numbers....they are possible, but stress free life!! Definitely dentistry never will be stress free life

 

[Deep Impact]

I’m not sure how many who post here have real life work experience. Having been through a variety of jobs since graduating dental school, I can tell you that there is a certain baseline salary in the industry. Then those who separate themselves and take off are those with keen business sense and those who can run it well. Sky is the limit. It’s really not defined by specialty necessarily either. What specialty training does is again guarantee some level of base salary across the board. But that’s where it begins. I know many general dentists who are so savvy at running their business, some even expand and their dental empire grows. On the flip side, I know specialists who get taken advantage of and get dragged through the mud by the greedy owners. Pursue your passion, learn how to run a great business better than the competition and you’ll be fine.