Dental

We have 58 dentists in our 30 clinics, which are located mainly along the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific Coasts, including Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. Most of our clinics are small and dental officers provide a full range of services, including operative, endodontics, periodontics, exodontia, prosthodontics, and limited orthodontics. Most patients are active duty members of the Coast Guard or other military services. Very few of our clinics provide dental care for geriatric or pediatric patients.

There are professional opportunities for long-term training. Primarily, we send dental officers to a two-year Comprehensive Dentistry residency. Other residencies may be available based on the needs of the Coast Guard’s dental program.

We have the highest retention rate of dentists of all the uniformed services. We also welcome dental officers who would like to transfer from other PHS agencies or uniformed services.

If you are interested in joining our program, you must first be commissioned by the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS). Information about commissioning can be obtained by calling the USPHS at (800) 279-1605 or by visiting their web site at http://www.usphs.gov.

Once commissioned, you will then be assigned to a Coast Guard dental clinic. There is a $75K accession (commissioning) bonus if you agree to serve for 4 years. You are also eligible for an annual dental special pay bonus of $10K to $15K. For assistance with your USPHS application please contact CAPT Anita Arnold at 202.475-5186 or email at Anita.F.Arnold@uscg.mil. For further information on the Coast Guard dental program please contact:

CAPT Donald C. Belcher, USPHS
Chief Dental Officer
United States Coast Guard (CG-1122)
2100 2ND ST SW, STOP 7902
WASHINGTON DC 20593-7902

Donald.C.Belcher@uscg.mil