Fact · Workforce
Dentists (total): Malaysia, 2024
Dental Market Radar Editorial Team · Updated · Data as of
Malaysia had 17,318 registered dentists in 2024, according to WHO Global Health Observatory. Basis: registered.
Comparability B Confidence medium
Series break: this series has a documented break (2024). A change across it reflects a change in source or definition, not growth. See Series break below.
Cite this
World Health Organization (GHO OData API; NHWA data portal December 2025 update). (2026). Dentists (total): Malaysia, as of 2024-12-31 [Data set]. Compiled by Dental Market Radar. https://dentalmarketradar.com/data/my/dentists-total/2024/
Permanent URL: https://dentalmarketradar.com/data/my/dentists-total/2024/. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Record
- Value
- 17,318 persons
- Unit
- persons
- As of
- Accessed
- Revision
- 1
- Confidence
- medium
- Method
- reported
- Basis
- registered
- Scope
- registered
- Comparability
- Comparability B B: close to the metric definition; the difference is noted
- Status
- Current revision
Source quote
"TimeDim":2024,..."Value":"17 318","NumericValue":17318.000000000
Locator: WHO GHO OData indicator HWF_0011 'Dentists (number)', SpatialDim MYS, TimeDim 2024; Comments 'NHWA data portal, December 2025 update'
Local definition
NHWA dentists (number); for 2024 the figure equals the Malaysian Dental Council Division I register count (not verified on the MDC source, which is blocked)
Source
World Health Organization (GHO OData API; NHWA data portal December 2025 update): WHO Global Health Observatory: National Health Workforce Accounts (dentists, dental assistants and therapists, dental prosthetic technicians) and oral health expenditure, Malaysia. Registry entry: my-who-gho-nhwa.
Notes
WHO NHWA re-publication of country-reported data. Series break: 2023 = 14,255 then 2024 = 17,318 (+21%), which suggests the 2024 submission switched from practising (annual practising certificate) holders to the full register. Search snippets of the MDC 'Statistic 2024' document (hq.moh.gov.my, 403, not fetched) show Division I 17,318 on register and 14,720 with APC; not usable as source until fetched. Treat as registered.
Metric definition
Dentists registered or licensed to practise (headcount); definition per record notes All markets for this metric.
Series break
Series break at 2024 (between 2023 and 2024): WHO NHWA series jumps from 14,255 (2023) to 17,318 (2024), +21%, probably because the 2024 submission switched from practising-certificate holders to the full register
History
| Year | Value | Basis | As of | Comparability | Source | Series break |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 17,318 persons | registered | Comparability B | WHO Global Health Observatory: National Health Workforce Accounts (dentists, dental assistants and therapists, dental prosthetic technicians) and oral health expenditure, Malaysia | Series break starts here | |
| 2024-mdc | 17,318 persons | registered | Comparability A | Statistics from Malaysian Dental Council - 2024 (10-page MDC statistics sheet, edition dated July 2025), listed under the MDC website menu Statistic > Statistic MDC | Series break starts here | |
| 2023 | 14,255 persons | other | Comparability B | WHO Global Health Observatory: National Health Workforce Accounts (dentists, dental assistants and therapists, dental prosthetic technicians) and oral health expenditure, Malaysia |
Please also cite the original source above.
Same metric in other markets
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