Vol. 496 No. 1
204 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of students and patients annually at the Cork Dental Hospital; the reason the post of consultant orthodontist and lecturer has not been filled; whether the proposed appointment is conditional; and the basis on which, in the interim, orthodontists have been employed to provide services to students and patients as stated in Parliamentary Question No. 321 of 16 June 1998. [22095/98]
The intake into dentistry in University College Cork is 35 per annum. Students study orthodontics in their third to fifth years and there would be about 100 such students in the hospital at any one time. In 1997 there were some 35,000 patient attendances recorded.
The post of consultant orthodontist-lecturer was filled with effect from 2 November 1998. It is a permanent appointment subject to the normal conditions that apply in such cases. The orthodontists employed in the interim were employed on short-term contracts.
