The dental technician and the attitude of dentists towards his role in Japan.

Historically the development of the Japanese dental care delivery system necessitated the enaction of the Dental Laboratory Technique Law. The Health Insurance Scheme, at present, is not able to operate without the collaboration of dental laboratory technicians. This means that the dental technician may introduce a possible competitive inter-relationship with the dentist who relies on prosthetic dentistry as the major source of his income. It does not mean illegal practice by dental technicians which has so far been negligible. The occupation of the dental technician, therefore, would seem to be very stable. Results obtained during the International Collaborative Study of the Dental Manpower Systems, however, showed some psychological conflict amongst the responding dental technicians.