General Dentist Recruiters
Healthcare Headhunters recruits healthcare professionals for employers. No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
This is what we do all day: recruit healthcare professionals.
Hire a general dentist who can diagnose, treat, document, and keep your daily book moving without overreaching clinically.
No postings. No stacks of resumes. No chasing. You interview a short list.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 305-306-4829.
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What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
- Associate Dentist
- Lead Dentist
What does an open seat cost you every week?
An open role costs you more than the recruiting fee. Someone covers the work, waits for care, or stops a service. We ask what is falling behind and who is carrying it. Use your own figures to compare the cost of waiting with the cost of hiring.
The seat is costing you every week.
Overtime, diverted patients, a stretched team and a schedule held together by favors.
The posting brought the wrong people.
Applicants arrive, but the person who has done this exact work is employed and not looking.
You are the one chasing.
Screening calls, no-shows and follow-ups land on the desk of someone with a facility to run.
What does this hire really come down to?
Your dentist may spend a shift examining hygiene patients, reviewing radiographs, presenting plans, completing restorative work, managing emergencies, and closing charts. A sound hire takes defined work from the owner, lead dentist, or current associates. We help you state exactly what that work includes before we approach candidates.
Start with the appointments that need coverage. You may need new-patient exams, hygiene checks, fillings, crown preparation, same-day emergencies, or follow-up care. For cases you want to keep in-house, ask candidates about recent case frequency and the complexity they accept independently. A dentist who performs a procedure occasionally may not want it scheduled repeatedly.
Next, define decision authority. Ask whether the dentist develops treatment plans alone, discusses options with a treatment coordinator, or reviews selected cases with a lead dentist. State who handles a changing diagnosis, a patient who wants another opinion, a difficult extraction, or a referral decision.
What do we check before you see anyone?
DDS or DMD, state license, and DEA. We screen for the degree, active state license, and DEA status named for the position. You complete credentialing and decide how any disclosed history affects privileges and your clinical review. Sedation permit status.
- If sedation belongs in the role, we ask which permit the dentist holds, where it is active, and which appointments they have managed. A permit is not presumed for every general dentist search. We also ask about the team and office process used during those cases.
- Procedure range and limits. We ask which endodontic, implant, and extraction cases the dentist completes independently, seeks input on, or refers. We discuss case selection, imaging review, restorative planning, and the signs that lead them to send a patient to a specialist.
- Treatment planning conversations. We ask how the dentist moves from examination findings and radiographs to a charted plan. Candidates describe alternatives, phased treatment, declined care, and follow-up recommendations. This shows whether their patient discussions match your practice’s approach.
- Production in context. We discuss past production with the appointment template, hygiene exam load, assistant coverage, new-patient flow, lab timing, and procedure mix. A number alone cannot show whether the dentist had blocks for larger cases or frequent interruptions.
- Charting and handoffs. We ask how findings, consent discussions, completed procedures, prescriptions, and return visits are recorded. We also ask what happens if a lab case is delayed, an emergency changes the day, or another dentist must see the patient next.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
We recruit from DSO associates, private practices, and AEGD and GPR resident pools. DSO associates may know structured books and shared teams. Private-practice dentists may bring broader ownership of treatment plans, referral choices, and recall relationships. Residents may seek their first permanent associate position after supervised training.
Dentists move for practical reasons. They may want more procedure exposure, clearer mentorship, a different schedule, stronger assistant coverage, or fewer cases outside their comfort range.
Which mistakes stall the search?
Do not treat a dental degree, state license, and DEA status as proof of independent experience with your needed procedures. Do not list implants, endodontics, extractions, or sedation without naming who reviews difficult cases and takes over when plans change.
Do not compare production figures before asking about procedure blocks, hygiene checks, assistants, lab support, and new-patient volume.
How would we run the search for this opening?
Identify which endodontic, implant, extraction, and sedation cases belong to this dentist. We present screened credentials, work history, procedure discussions, and interview findings. You may also want to retain selected endodontic, implant, or extraction cases. We describe your actual schedule, procedure mix, reporting structure, and compensation discussion so candidates can judge the role accurately.
Describe the daily book
Tell us about new-patient appointments, hygiene checks, procedure blocks, assistant coverage, lab process, emergency additions, and referral patterns.
Set clinical boundaries
State who reviews plans, covers absences, handles complications, and makes referral decisions.
Review candidates against the work
You interview finalists, complete credentialing and clinical assessment, then decide whether to make an offer.
National median annual wage. SOC 29-1021, Dentists, General.
BLS reports Dentists, General as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for General Dentist, its setting or its engagement terms.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
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Is a sedation permit needed for every candidate?
No: it depends on the duties assigned and the services your practice offers. When sedation is part of the position, we screen permit status and relevant experience while you confirm your own credentialing and clinical standards. Clear boundaries prevent an interview from becoming a vague discussion of experience.
Should we hire an Associate Dentist or a Lead Dentist?
Choose an Associate Dentist when another dentist sets clinical direction and reviews selected cases. Consider a Lead Dentist when you need someone to guide other dentists, review plans, and carry broader clinical decision duties.
Can you search for a dentist who performs implants or endodontics?
Yes: we screen for actual case experience, not general interest in advanced procedures. Tell us which cases must be completed independently, which remain referrals, and what support is available if a case becomes more involved.
How should we assess production history?
Ask what produced the number. Production may reflect patient demand, appointment design, assistant support, hygiene exams, procedure mix, lab timing, and authority to present care.
What are the placement terms?
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. We arrange locum tenens, travel and contract coverage on request. Placement into your own per diem pool is available on request. Credentialing, licensing and malpractice coverage are confirmed per engagement before anyone starts.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
Tell us what remains on the schedule, what should move to the new dentist, and who makes final clinical decisions.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- We review your role, responsibilities and location.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- You meet a focused shortlist when qualified candidates fit the agreed search.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Which other positions in this family should you consider?
What do you get at each step of the search?
Our process for every search: calibrate the seat with you, map the market, research the real people, reach out to each one personally, qualify them in live conversation, then hand you a short list with a written brief on each person and support through the offer.
Search Calibration
You get an agreed brief: the work, reporting line, credentials, schedule, and offer you can make.
Market Mapping
You get a search aimed at relevant backgrounds, including people working now who have not applied.
Professional Contact Intelligence
We check appropriate ways to reach the people identified for your search. You do not have to chase them yourself.
Persistent Personalized Outreach
We explain your actual job and follow up with people who may consider a conversation.
Live Candidate Qualification
You see people we have spoken with about the work, interest, and practical fit, not an unread resume pile.
Candidate Intelligence and Process Support
You get a written brief and support through interviews and offer discussions. You make the hiring decision.
How long will it take to see a short list?
That depends on the job, schedule, available people, and what your employer can offer. We discuss those constraints before outreach and update you as candidates respond. We do not promise a fixed shortlist date. We check the job brief before arranging interviews. Tell us which parts of the role you can change.
What if a candidate receives a counteroffer?
We ask why the person wants to move and discuss competing decisions before an offer. A counteroffer can still change their choice. Keep the duties and offer clear rather than assuming more money settles every concern. Tell us early if parts of your offer cannot change, so the candidate hears it from us first.
What are the replacement terms?
We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement. Ask us to walk through those terms before you sign, so you know how a replacement would work for your opening and who would start it.
What do we not do in a standard permanent search?
We do not bill standard contingency search by the hour or simply repost your job. Temporary coverage is a separate arrangement. Any retainer or different engagement must be agreed, not assumed. Tell us early if you need coverage while the permanent search runs.