Over 100,000 children refused dental appointments last year due to lack of public dentists

Over 100,000 children were denied primary school screening dental appointments in 2023, according to the Irish Dental Association (IDA).

The IDA has said it is due to a shortage of public dentists and that some children were not seen by a dentist until they went to secondary school.

Government policy suggests that children in primary school should be seen by a dentist in 2nd, 4th and 6th class, but only 104,488 children out of an eligible 208,233 were assessed last year.

Between 2006 and 2022, there was a 23% fall in public dentists, according to the IDA, adding that 74 dentists were needed just to get back to 2009 levels.

"There is huge uncertainty over the service", said IDA Chief Executive Fintan Hourihan, "the Government appears to be suggesting that children should be seen by private dentists, 90% of whom say the priority would in fact be on rebuilding the public dentist service."

He also said that the HSE was failing in its duty to provide adequate care to patients under the Health Act.

The HSE has said that because of a recruitment embargo, it cannot appoint any dental staff who are not at consultant level.

Incoming chair of the dentists' general practitioners group, Caroline Robins, has said said dental decay "is not like a broken arm, once it sets in it is a lifetime of work."

She added,

"There is that moment in time at the beginning when we have that ability to protect those teeth, to prevent further problems and educate parent and children on how best to tell them going forward to look after their teeth."

Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Ms Robins stressed that dental schools need significant investment as she called on the Government to increase the funding and the number of dentists, dental nurses and hygienists.