Sinn Féin TD for Wicklow, John Brady, has said new figures from the HSE confirm the reality of the crisis in public dental care that he is seeing on the ground across the county. He described the situation as completely unacceptable and said urgent action is needed.
Speaking on the issue, John Brady TD said:
“The figures I have received from the HSE are deeply concerning. They confirm what I am hearing every week from parents and patients in Wicklow, public dental services are in crisis. The HSE has told me that due to resource constraints they do not even have precise figures on the number of children and adults on waiting lists for dental care, relying instead on estimated figures. That is unacceptable in itself”.
Previously, children were routinely seen by a dentist in second, fourth and sixth class. The HSE has now confirmed there are insufficient staffing resources to target children in second and fourth class. This means many are not seen until they are aged eleven or twelve.
Deputy Brady warned that waiting until this age could lead to serious and irreversible damage.
“If dental care is not provided early in life, problems which could have been caught and treated are left to worsen. This is a complete lack of early intervention, and it will have long term consequences for children’s health.”
He also highlighted the difficulties faced by adults with medical cards who cannot access dentists.
“The figures show there are only 24 dentists in Kildare and West Wicklow providing care to medical card holders, and just 15 in Dublin South-East and Wicklow. These dentists have long waiting lists and patients are left without care. Even the Irish Dental Association has called for urgent reform of the medical card Dental Treatment Services Scheme because of the shortage of dentists in public care. Fewer than 650 dentists across the country are signed up to the scheme out of a total of 3,652 registered with the Dental Council. That is an alarming shortfall.”
Deputy Brady said the government must urgently address the staffing crisis and reform the medical card scheme to ensure children and those on low incomes can access care.
“We need to see proper investment in staffing and a clear commitment to ensuring children are seen early in primary school. Access to dental care is a basic right and should never depend on a person’s income or background.”