Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

The Ombudsman for Children has issued a report this week to highlight the many ways in which children are being failed in this country. The report states that children are competing for attention at a time of crisis in many areas. Dental health is one of those areas where children are being forgotten so I want to focus on children in this contribution.

We have 104,000 children on a waiting list for the school screening dental service. There are 4,342 children and special care patients on the public dental surgery lists, hundreds of them in CHOs 6 and 7, which cover my constituency of Wicklow. The impact of this on those tens of thousands of children is enormous, both on their physical and mental health. A further 13,294 patients are on the orthodontics waiting list, 11,000 of whom have been waiting for more than a year. This is extremely worrying when we know one third of children will need orthodontic treatment. The stated cost of private care is €3,500 and, even with the tax rebates, I do not know many families that could cover that, particularly at such an expensive time in families' lives, when they are paying mortgages, back-to-school costs, childcare and the day-to-day expenses that come with having children.

Maintaining good dental health is a huge component of creating a positive self-image for a child. It is not just about that; it is also about their ability to speak and smile, which is fundamental to a child's well-being, as well as being able to chew and swallow efficiently. It is important we get it right in the early days. As with much to do with children, it is all about early intervention. Yet again, we are seeing a failure to deal with that by the Government. Dr. Anne O'Connell, a consultant at Tallaght Hospital, has stated the early loss of primary teeth can have far-reaching implications for the child and necessitate future complex and expensive dental treatment. Even from a cost perspective, it makes sense to see these children earlier rather than allowing problems become deeper and more complex.

The HSE recognises and has given clear recommendations on its website that children should visit the dentist regularly. It states there should be a free dental appointment for all children in certain classes in primary school and for children with special needs.

A follow-up appointment for preventative care or treatment should be available at a child's local HSE clinic. Even children outside of these classes are supposed to be seen by their HSE dental clinic for emergency treatment. The HSE places a large emphasis, looking at its website, on dental health for children but it is not the lived reality for many. Some of the children’s experiences in Wicklow that I have been told about are far removed from the standard set out by the HSE. One parent told me that their daughter will be going into second year in September. She has never been called for a dental appointment. Another told me that they did not even realise there was a public dental health service despite having two children in primary school. One mother told me she had to find the money to get an extraction done through a private system because she was not even able to get that done on a public service. Many children are being failed and the more complex the case the longer the waiting time. Children are being left behind. It is happening on this Government’s watch and it is unacceptable.

I also want to draw attention to another element of our motion, namely the public service for medical card holders. Only this week, I received a letter from an 82-year-old man in my constituency. He was turned away from his local dentist because they said they do not take medical card patients any more. He has been unable to find a dentist that will take him. Surely the most basic interventions should be available for people who need them and who have medical cards. I want the Minister of State to think about what it must be like for that man who has gone seeking help for a basic dental treatment to be told that it is not available to him simply because he is living on a State pension and cannot afford to go private to do it.

There is a decided lack of dignity in how we treat people in this system and particularly for public patients who are meant to be looked after by the HSE. It is probably one of the most blatant and acceptable instances in healthcare where people are told that they are just not wealthy enough and they are not priority for this care. It is rotten and should not be the way – not for our children and not for our retirees. Due to the constant failure of this Government to deliver much-needed public services, we in the Social Democrats continue to need to bring forward motions such as this to try to get people the basics.

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