(24) Ethnic Diversity in OMS Residency... Are We There Yet?

Thursday, September 15, 2022

1:30 PM – 3:00 PM CDT

Figure 1: Change in OMS resident ethnicity from 2015 to 2020.

Figure 2: Proportions of OMS resident by ethnicity in comparison to dental students and the United States population in 2020.

Presenting Author(s)

Aishwarya Ravivarapu, B.S.

Doctor of Dental Surgery Candidate
University of the Pacific, Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry
Danville, California, United States

Co-Author(s)

David K. Lam, DDS, MD, PHD

Professor & Chair, Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
University of the Pacific
San Francisco, California, United States
FM

Fatima Mashkoor, DDS

Clinical Assistant Professor
University of Pacific, Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry
San Francisco, California, United States

Disclosure(s):

Aishwarya Ravivarapu, B.S.: No financial relationships to disclose

David K. Lam, DDS, MD, PHD: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.

Fatima Mashkoor, DDS: I do not have any relevant financial / non-financial relationships with any proprietary interests.

Abstract: Purpose/Statement of the problem:
There have been many efforts over the years to increase ethnic diversity in the field of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMS), as well as in dentistry as a whole. If we are making progress, one would expect an increase in ethnic diversity of OMS resident trainees over time. As such, the purpose of this study was to examine changes in ethnic diversity of OMS residents, and to compare the current ethnicity of OMS residents to that of dental students, and the United States population as a whole.

Materials and methods:
Data of OMS residents by ethnicity was extracted from 2015-2020 annual surveys of advanced dental education provided by the American Dental Association’s Commission of Dental Accreditation. Comparisons were made to the U.S. population in the year 2020 and to dental school enrollments in 2020. These data were extracted from the internet at
https://www.adea.org/data/students/.

Methods of data analysis:
All data were converted to proportions (percentages). Results are reported graphically. Chi-square tests were used to compare proportions for each characteristic across groups (OMS, U.S. population, dental school). Regression analysis was used to determine trends across year (2015 – 2020).

Results:
** Please insert figure 1 submission uploaded **

Figure 1: Change in OMS resident ethnicity from 2015 to 2020.
There were significant changes in Whites (p < 0.05), Hispanics (p < 0.05), and Asians (p < 0.001) over time.

** Please insert figure 2 submission uploaded **

Figure 2: Proportions of OMS resident by ethnicity in comparison to dental students and the United States population in 2020.
There were significantly less African American (p < 0.05), Hispanic (p < 0.01), and Asian (p < 0.001) OMS residents compared to the U.S. population. There were significantly more White OMS residents than dental students (p < 0.05). There were significantly less African American (p < 0.01) and Hispanic (p < 0.01) dental students than US population. There were significantly more Asian (p < 0.001) dental students compared to the U.S. population.

Conclusions:
Although there were significant changes in ethnic diversity in OMS residents over time, the ethnicity of OMS residents today are not reflective of the U.S. population as a whole. The ethnicity of dental students today are also not reflective of the U.S. population as a whole. The above findings suggest that although some progress has been made in increasing ethnic diversity of OMS residents, we still have a long way to go. Perhaps the best way to improve OMS resident ethnic diversity is to increase the diversity of the dental students as a whole.

References:
1 Racial Disparities in American Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (Shahid Aziz, 2010, JOMS)
2 ADA CODA Annual Survey for Advanced Dental Education (2015-2021)