Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 September 2004
777 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Health and Children if he will confirm that the information which he provided in reply to Parliamentary Question No. 21 of 22 June 2004 was accurate, regarding the average waiting time for orthodontic treatment in Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21559/04]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy is aware, responsibility for the provision of orthodontic treatment to patients in County Kerry rests with the Southern Health Board in the first instance. I am pleased to advise the Deputy that I have taken a number of measures to improve orthodontic services in the Southern Health Board 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 under the leadership of the professor of orthodontics.
In June 2002, my Department provided additional funding of €5 million from the 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 Southern Health Board was allocated an additional €720,000 from this fund for the treatment of cases in this way.
The orthodontic service in the Southern Health Board is centrally located in St. Finbarr's Hospital Cork with outreach clinics in Tralee three days per week, Mallow two and a half days on average per week and Bantry two days per week. The chief executive officer of the Southern Health Board has informed my Department that on 15 September last, there was no category A waiting list for orthodontic treatment in Kerry and there were 875 patients on the category B waiting list, with some 25% of these patients waiting less than one year. The chief executive officer also informed my Department that the average waiting time for orthodontic treatment in County Kerry is currently 3.5 to four years. Information previously provided to the Deputy relating to the average waiting time for orthodontic treatment in County Kerry was in accordance with information provided to this Department by the Southern Health Board.
Finally, the chief executive officers of the health boards/authority have informed my Department that at the end of the June quarter 2004, there were 20,236 children receiving orthodontic treatment from health boards/authority; of these, 3,400 children were receiving treatment from the Southern Health Board.
