In 2023, CDHO partnered with the Accessing Centre for Expertise (ACE) to conduct a geospatial analysis of the Dental Hygienist workforce in Ontario. The analysis was conducted to better understand workforce distribution, which is critical to ensuring equitable access to oral health care across all communities. Using anonymized CDHO registrant data and census data from Statistics Canada, ACE linked these datasets using the first three characters of Ontario postal codes to conduct a geospatial analysis of the distribution of RDHs across Ontario.

Key Findings

• High overall supply: Ontario had 97 RDHs per 100,000 people – the highest provincial rate in Canada – and higher than the average rate in Canada of 73.4 per 100,000 people reported for 2023 by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
• Extreme regional variation: Rates per 100,000 varied widely, from 0 – 739 after removing five outlier postal codes (some very small-population areas had rates exceeding 20,000/100,000, highlighting extreme distortions where populations are tiny). 27 postal codes had no RDHs at all.
• Urban vs. rural gaps: High concentrations of RDHs were found in urban centres, while rural and remote areas were significantly underserved.
• Mismatch between population and workforce: At the local level, population size did not consistently align with the number of RDHs, indicating that additional factors (e.g., workplace settings, economic opportunities) shape distribution.
• Need for targeted planning: General workforce expansion alone will not solve localized shortages. Strategic, region-specific interventions are needed.

This analysis is being shared with partners such as the professional associations and the Ontario Government to help with health human resource planning. View the complete analysis.

If you have any questions, please get in touch with us at communications@cdho.org.