Associate dentist or sales role? Let’s be honest

Dental
1

I recently came across a job role while doing my daily search for job. It was for an associate dentist and being a freshly graduated I clicked the job . Like anybody , I assumed that it would involve clinical work , growing my skills , learning new dental skills, patient care , etc

But learning further, it was more about

Home visits, explaining aligners and converting leads into sales.

And honestly that didn’t fit right. I took a pause and thought this is not the dentistry I signed up for .

There is nothing wrong with the role , modern dentistry involves communication, marketing , business and everything . But when the core of the job becomes meeting targets and leading sales,
calling it Associate Dentist feels misleading.

Because for a fresher, associate dentist role means

  • Clinical growth
  • Gaining confidence as a dentist
  • Leaning core procedures

Not chasing numbers …

I think the problem is not the role , but how it is being presented. If the role is of sales then called it something like dental sales executive or clinical sales manager would be right.

This protects the profession , the trust of patients and the expectations of young dentists.

As dentists, maybe we need to start drawing that line.

Not to reject such roles—but to name them correctly.

Because what we call a role shapes our profession.

Associate dentist
Associate dentist1149Ă—1369 339 KB

Are we okay with this shift ? Or should we be more careful as in how the dental roles are defined?

MBH/PS

9 Likes
2

Total agreement here. By the 3-month mark, corporate dentistry really makes you question your ethics.

1 Like
3

That’s true. As dental aligners as known to dentist much more than layman, it’s assumed that they can explain about it better and answer any odd queries of patients. We can take it as a part of learning where you learn how to influence people with your talks. This can help you in your clinic to increase number of patients with mouth publicity. Communication is the key to any business or any profession.

4

In today’s time things are changing, concept are changing.but it’s us who have to decide how and what we want to do and get known for. Yes , marketing and communication is most important in today’s market,but not in cost of changing definition of our profession.

1 Like
5

I agree with you. Definitely it will improve your communication skills and provide an experience but still due to misleading name, sometime it will loose trust of candidate.

1 Like
6

Roles should be correctly defined as per the work done in it. If this isn’t done by an organization, it should be called out.

1 Like
7

Really :pleading_face: Good

1 Like
8

Corporates are converting doctors into salespeople. Even I had this experience as a fresher and honestly it felt like I was loosing my ethics and I left the job within few days.

1 Like
9

Well said. Clarity in titles is essential for maintaining trust in the profession.

1 Like
10

True! A role should be match with its title. When it doesn’t, it can be something confused, especially when someone is just starting out.

1 Like
11

This is so relatable. Most of the ads posted by recruiters these days are quite misleading.

Whether to opt for a clinical or a non-clinical role post-BDS is a personal choice. For dentists who are willing to pivot into non-clinical roles such as digital content creation, sales, or marketing–these prospects could be great.

However, for someone who wants to excel as a clinician, this is likely a deviation from their path.

1 Like
12

Well said! I agree with you. It’s happening in most other fields too. They promote the job role in an over glorified or misleading way and it ends up being the same thing. Promoting, marketing, cold calling and sales. Job role itself is not the problem but, naming it something when the role is entirely something else.. is wrong.

1 Like
13

This is an issue that’s present in every role. I too had experience of such positions where I was asked to perform tasks that aren’t remotely related to my job role.

1 Like
14

I agree. Sales roles are valuable, but calling them Associate Dentist can mislead fresh graduates who expect clinical learning and patient care. Clear job titles help maintain professional trust and set the right expectations.

1 Like
15

This happens in every healthcare industry. As you suggested, there is nothing wrong with the role. It should be presented differently. Business mind is good, as it helps to grow in our life. B

1 Like
16

Didn’t know this about corporate dentistry. In private clinics in Kerala, this has not yet started. The marketing is not yet associate or assistant dentist 's job.

1 Like