ODA President Dr. Hal Jeter looks ahead at his 2024-25 term
ODA Immediate Past President Dr. Manny Chopra passes the gavel to ODA President Dr. Hal Jeter.
Dr. Hal Jeter began his term as Ohio Dental Association president at the ODA House of Delegates in September. In this Q&A with “ODA Today,” Jeter looks forward to his term.
What are some of the issues you expect the Ohio Dental Association to face during your presidency?
The issues that we are already facing and are common to our profession and to organized dentistry:
- Declining membership
- Dental insurance reform
- Workforce shortages
How do you think the ODA should address these issues?
These are not new and the ODA has been hard at work for years to address them.
We have already instituted methods to make dues payment easier and I look forward to a time when dues could actually decrease and (re)establishment of a more graduated dues structure for new graduates will be reality. The bottom line to increasing membership, however, lies with our existing members. There is NO substitute for building relationships and personally sharing our experiences and the value we find in organized dentistry as we invite others to join us. To borrow a term from (American College of Dentists Executive Director) Mike Graham, we must make it a goal to “rebuild community.”
Regarding insurance, we obviously scored major victories with the historic Medicaid increase and the passage of the non-covered services legislation. Our ODA Insurance Working Group stands ready to assist EVERY ODA member with issues regarding problems with how their payers are processing dental insurance claims. I can tell you that this is an UNDERUTILIZED member benefit. Our Council on Dental Care Plans and Dental Practice keeps tabs on the constantly evolving dental insurance landscape and assists the Executive Committee in determining the priority items regarding insurance reform that make it to our legislative agenda.
The workforce issue has caused problems with most, if not all, dental offices in the country (mine very much included). From the inability to hire and keep dental hygienists to problems maintaining other clinical staff, front office workers and yes, even associate or employee dentists, this is a huge problem. The ADA Health Policy Institute estimates that the capacity for dental offices to see and treat patients has decreased by some 10% due to the post-COVID workforce shortage. The ODA’s Dental Education and Licensure Committee has taken this issue as a primary goal to address and search for solutions for our members. Our media efforts to recruit more young people into the dental field are heard throughout the state and our website has a page dedicated to this subject (www.oda.org/member-center/resources/recruit-and-retain-staff)
We will endeavor to set the goal of a brighter future for Ohio’s dentists and we have the minds to do it.
If you could state one message to new ODA members, what would it be?
Get involved. Start with your local component and make relationships with other members; your colleagues. That will be the beginning of a strong support network of encouragement and mentoring that will last your entire career and beyond. Next, plan to attend ODA’s Leadership Institute. It will be your BEST overview of who and what the ODA is, what the ODA does for its members AND how you can become a part of its successes.
What, or who, helped you make the decision to pursue dentistry as a profession?
I have always had a passion for “doing for others.” As I got older that became entwined in my developing passion for health care. Dentistry seemed to rise to the top as I gave consideration to my life goals. Even though dentistry was a “second career” (I was a chemist for five years) it was still my first choice. I was married with three children but after a lot of prayer and a lot of long talks with my wife, I decided to leave what appeared to be a secure position (it wasn’t after all) and enroll at The Ohio State University College of Dentistry. I have NEVER questioned that choice and I have never looked back. Dentistry is what I was created for and is the avenue through which I serve God and those around me.
Any closing remarks?
In my president-elect’s address I referred to the ODA as a “our house,” a house with over 5,000 caretakers. It is all of our responsibility to maintain its foundation, repair it as needed, and especially work together to enlarge its structure. We all have ownership and I look forward to serving this association and our members to help us all do that!
