Orthodontist 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 an orthodontist who can manage your new-start flow, direct assistants clearly, and finish cases to your practice’s standards.
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 Orthodontist
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?
An orthodontist affects more than bracket placement. On a normal day, this clinician reviews records, presents treatment options, starts cases, checks progress, directs assistant tasks, and decides when a case needs more work before debond. We recruit for the decisions behind those appointments, not just specialty training.
A strong candidate can explain how they move between new starts, adjustment visits, aligner checks, and finishing appointments. We ask what the doctor handles personally, what assistants prepare, and when the doctor changes mechanics or requests new records. Those answers show whether their work style suits your appointment template.
Case acceptance also matters. The orthodontist must explain treatment length, appliance choices, expected cooperation, and next steps in language parents and adult patients can follow. We ask how they handle hesitation about comprehensive treatment without making promises they cannot support. Your team completes its own clinical assessment and credentialing after our screening.
What do we check before you see anyone?
State dental license: We verify an active dental license where state law requires one for orthodontic practice. We also review any disclosed license history and ask whether the candidate can meet your credentialing timeline before a start date. ABO certification: American Board of Orthodontics certification can show formal examination beyond residency.
- It is a useful preference when it matches your hiring plan, but it is not presented as a universal legal condition. We confirm the status a candidate reports.
- Bracket systems: We ask which bracket prescriptions and bonding systems the orthodontist has used recently. We also ask how they address a bracket failure, poor seating, wire progression question, or an assistant’s uncertainty before the patient leaves.
- Clear aligner work: We discuss the clinician’s role in digital setup review, attachment planning, progress checks, and refinement decisions. Ask whether your office expects familiarity with a particular platform, or whether training is available on your chosen system.
- New-start volume: We ask about the number and type of starts handled during a typical schedule. A candidate may be comfortable with a full start block but prefer more time for records review, or may want a mix of starts and recall visits. That distinction affects your schedule design.
- Finishing and referral judgment: We ask how the orthodontist reviews marginal tooth positions, occlusion, patient cooperation, and treatment objectives before debond. We also ask which cases they would treat independently and when they would seek consultation or refer, such as a skeletal discrepancy outside their comfort level.
Where do we find them, and why would they move?
Orthodontic residents nearing specialty completion are one source pool. Some seek structured mentorship while building independent judgment. Others want a practice model different from the one they experienced in training, such as more new starts, a different technology mix, or clearer ownership prospects.
We also speak with orthodontists in private orthodontic practices and orthodontic DSOs. A move may follow a change in schedule, compensation structure, leadership, patient mix, or clinical autonomy. We do not assume why any individual is open to a conversation; we ask directly and present your opportunity accurately.
Which mistakes stall the search?
A common mistake is hiring from a résumé alone, then learning the doctor has limited experience with your bracket system or aligner platform. Another is equating a high number of former starts with suitable work. Ask who reviewed records, planned cases, and handled finishing decisions.
Leaving assistant delegation vague. Clarify who prepares bonding, gives appliance instructions, documents visits, and brings a clinical concern to the doctor.
How would we run the search for this opening?
Tell us your split between consultations, records, starts, adjustment visits, aligner checks, and debonds. We review credentials, work history, bracket and aligner experience, new-start exposure, and stated scope. Meet candidates using your own examples. Discuss schedule blocks, assistant roles, treatment presentation, clinical oversight, compensation, and credentialing.
Describe the actual schedule
Identify the decisions your orthodontist must make without another doctor present.
Screen the clinical match
We ask concrete questions about delegation, refinements, difficult finishes, and consultation boundaries.
Interview against your office model
We coordinate the process through a permanent contingency search.
National median annual wage. SOC 29-1023, Orthodontists.
The published occupation matches Orthodontist. BLS wages are not a specific employer offer.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
Open roles
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What happens if an orthodontist receives a counteroffer after discussing schedule and clinical autonomy?
A counteroffer can change a candidate’s decision, particularly when a current practice responds with more pay or a revised schedule. We keep communication direct, confirm motivations early, and help you compare your offer with the candidate’s stated reasons for moving.
Do you recruit associate orthodontists as well as orthodontists?
Yes: associate orthodontist is a common title for this search. We first clarify whether the role includes independent treatment planning, new-start responsibility, mentorship, or a future ownership discussion.
Is ABO certification necessary?
That depends on your preference and local hiring policy. ABO certification is a meaningful credential, but it is not a universal legal mandate. We can screen for it while also presenting licensed specialists with relevant case experience.
How do you screen for aligner experience?
We ask about the doctor’s part in setup review, attachments, progress visits, refinements, and patient communication. We also ask whether experience is broad across systems or tied to one platform, so you can judge training needs.
How are your fees handled?
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 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 how your orthodontic schedule runs, which systems you use, and where your team needs support. We will screen orthodontists against those details and introduce candidates worth your interview time.
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 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.