asked the Minister for Health the proportion of primary school children who are receiving regular and adequate dental treatment under the scheme for such children.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - School Dental Scheme.
12.
According to the latest information available, that is for the year 1972, about 190,000 national school children, or 38 per cent of such children, received dental care under the child health services and one half of these, approximately, had their treatment completed in that year.
It is recognised that the present dental services available for school children are not yet sufficiently developed to provide regular systematic treatment for all such children in need of dental care. The provision of this service by health boards depends mainly on the employment of wholetime dental officers. The number of such officers employed by health boards has notably increased in recent years and it is the policy of health boards, with my approval, to continue to expand their wholetime dental staff.