You are doing microsurgery on a conscious patient who is quite often stressed. Working on frightened stressed people has a physical effect on a dentist , it raises their blood pressure and cortisol,adrenaline levels as well.
You are doing microsurgery to tolerances of fractions of a millimetre in a confined space that requires you to contort your neck and back into unnatural positions for long periods of time , and maintain absolute concentration for extended periods whilst also directing your nurse and reassuring and informing the patient.
All of this has to be done to strict time schedules , even though it can be impossible to predict if things will not go to plan , or an emergency occurs. Running late puts immense stress on the team to catch up and additionally they are aware patients will complain if they are kept waiting.
Many people are frightened, stressed and anxious when they go to the dentist and often that results in misplaced anger, aggression towards the dental team .
You are more likely to be sued in the U.K. , as a dentist , than anywhere else in the world , so paperwork, notes , consent have to be tip top and even if you do nothing wrong a complaint can easily ruin your life and career.
Dentists in the U.K. are more highly regulated than anywhere else in the world , they are inspected by over 50 bodies. Of these the GDC is the most feared because even a trivial complaint with no basis can drag on for years before being resolved with multiple hearings , communications , loss of earnings and incredible stress.
Because most dentists are self employed they , like all self employed, get no sick pay , maternity pay etc so they have to make sure that every minute of the working day they are treating a patient because unless they are treating someone they are not earning money .
The physical contortions of working in unnatural positions for 8 plus hours a day mean neck and back problems are rife and the continuous disinfection of hands multiple times a day mean skin problems are rife . Neck and back are the most common reasons for early retirement.
Most dentists are perfectionists who want to do their best for patients and this type of driven personality is necessary to get through the arduous training , but it also means that they often place unrealistic expectations on themselves . The demands of the job also means many can be quite socially isolated as there is little time or energy for anything outside of work.
The financial pressures of being a small businessman start from the moment you qualify with over £80,000 of debt, student loans to pay off and needing to earn ever increasing amounts to pay registration , indemnity (malpractice insurance ) , locum insurance, ill health insurance and can often mean it is very difficult to pay for the postgraduate training you need in order to progress and increase your earnings.
Even if you do not own a practice you will be a small businessman , but owning a practice means you not only have the clinical stresses but all the stresses on top of running a business, employing staff , keeping on top of legislatory requirements and paperwork and keeping your head above water .
Finally , it has to be said , that in the U.K. there is an almost pathological level of mistrust , antipathy and ill will towards dentists that there is not in other countries ,alongside some very ill informed views on what the average dentist earns. Can you imagine being told several times a day that someone hates you ? (Nothing personal but I hate dentists). Can you imagine being told on a regular basis that someone is paying for your new car when you haven’t had a new car in 10 years ?