Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 22 November 2022
748. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health if he will provide the details of any workforce planning undertaken by his Department in the area of oral healthcare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [58078/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am committed to the reform of dental services to align with the National Oral Health Policy Smile agus Sláinte. Improving and enabling easy access for the public to oral healthcare services is a key component of the Policy, requiring availability of a suitably skilled workforce to provide appropriate oral healthcare across all settings, ranging from primary to advanced oral healthcare.
This requires the development of a dental workforce plan, taking into account all oral healthcare professionals registered with the Dental Council, as well as auxiliary workers either voluntarily registered or not required to register with the Dental Council, but who are essential to both support and provide oral healthcare services. The Department has begun engaging with stakeholders and I expect significant progress on this workforce plan to be made in 2023, through the use of dedicated resources which have been set aside to advance this work next year.
To this end, the Department of Health will engage with Departments and agencies including the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, the Higher Education Authority, the HSE, and others.
