Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 September 2004
155 Mr. Noonan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children her plans to improve dental services for public patients in the Mid-Western Health Board region; the expected waiting time for patients at Nenagh dental clinic and at the dental clinic at the Limerick Regional Hospital; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22994/04]
View answerThe provision of orthodontic services is the statutory responsibility of the health boards-authority in the first instance.
I am pleased to advise the Deputy that I have taken a number of measures to increase the treatment capacity of orthodontic services in the Mid-Western Health Board, MWHB, area and on a national basis. The grade of specialist in orthodontics has been created in the health board orthodontic service. In 2003, my Department and the health boards funded 13 dentists from various health boards for specialist in orthodontics qualifications at training programmes in Ireland and at three separate universities in the United Kingdom. These 13 trainees for the public orthodontic service are additional to the six dentists who commenced their training in 2001. Thus, there is an aggregate of 19 dentists in specialist training for orthodontics. These measures will complement the other structural changes being introduced into the orthodontic service, including the creation of an auxiliary grade of orthodontic therapist to work in the orthodontic area.
Furthermore, the commitment of the Department to training development is manifested in the funding provided to both the training of specialist clinical staff and the recruitment of a professor in orthodontics for the Cork Dental School. This appointment at the school will facilitate the development of an approved training programme leading to specialist qualification in orthodontics. The chief executive officer of the Southern Health Board has reported that the professor commenced duty on 1 December 2003. In recognition of the importance of this post at Cork Dental School, my Department has given approval in principle to a proposal from the school to further substantially improve the training facilities there for orthodontics. This project should see the construction of a large orthodontic unit and support facilities; it will ultimately support an enhanced teaching and treatment service to the wider region — including the MWHB — under the leadership of the professor of orthodontics.
In June 2002, my Department provided additional funding of €5 million from the national treatment purchase fund to health boards-authority specifically for the purchase of orthodontic treatment. This funding is enabling boards to provide both additional sessions for existing staff and purchase treatment from private specialist orthodontic practitioners. The MWHB was allocated an additional €0.451 million from this fund for the treatment of cases in this way.
The management of orthodontic services in the MWHB area is the statutory responsibility of the chief executive officer. My Department has therefore asked the chief executive officer to supply the information requested regarding waiting times at Nenagh and Limerick to the Deputy directly.
The chief executive officers of the health boards-authority have informed my Department that at the end of the March quarter 2004, there were 21,033 children receiving orthodontic treatment in the public orthodontic service. This means that there are over twice as many children getting orthodontic treatment as there are children waiting to be treated.
