Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I support the motion and recognise it is very well presented and timely. It is well overdue. It is an excellent motion and it reflects the real situation affecting so many hundreds of thousands of people. The fact that dental services are not available to them is truly shocking. It is not the first motion of its kind and it will probably not be the last. The motion calls for legislation to be brought forward by September but there is little hope of that. It is a situation that affects every one of us, our children, our grandchildren and all of the families throughout the country.

My office, like every other office, is inundated with people contacting me about appalling situations. It is so distressful for people who are trying to avail of services. I attend my dentist Daniel O'Connell on The Quay in Clonmel. He is a top-class dentist who cares for people. He has been questioning this issue with me for five or six years, with regard to the falling number of dental students and dentists, and dentists withdrawing from the scheme because it is outdated. This has not even been discussed. We have heard so much from the IMO and the new organisation for GPs about their contract and how outdated it was. They have made great progress thankfully. The dentists are the poor relation. There does not seem to be any attempt to understand or engage with their association in an effort to try to hold onto the dentists in the medical card scheme and attract new ones.

As we are speaking about dentists, the wonderful receptionist Cheryl Moore Wall was a wonderful lady. She succumbed to illness and passed away in April. She was an exceptional lady to meet and to speak to on the phone. She always organised the appointments and follow-up visits in a cheerful and helpful manner. I express my sympathies to Daniel O'Connell and his team and to Ms Moore Wall's family and her large circle of friends. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h-anam dílis.

Deputy Shanahan referred to South East Technological University. Certainly it is a big issue and we need to promote and support that dentists may be able to study dentistry in this institution. It is a national problem and the schools and colleges we have are not able to attract students. Who oversees these issues in the Department of Health or the HSE? They cannot see this festering sore with regard to the lack of dentists. People have to travel to different counties to try to get a dentist to operate on their children under the medical card scheme. It is a very worrying situation for young people and children not to be able to access it. It is a stress to have to travel perhaps 60, 70 or 80 miles away. This is how it is in rural Ireland. We speak about Sláintecare and all kinds of healthcare on our doorstep but we do not have it. A real root and branch review has to take place.

I support the call for the legislation because it is so badly needed but will we see it and how long will it take to enact it? How long will it take for legislation to be brought forward, debated, discussed and approved? Then we will need the statutory instruments to put it in place and give effect to it. This will be a very cumbersome procedure. We need something very quickly. The figures are quite startling and the number of people waiting is shocking. The figures have already been read into the record by many other Deputies. It is outrageous. It should not be happening in a so-called First World country. We need to take this issue very seriously. Everybody is supporting the motion. Other motions have been passed but nothing has changed. We need to make a real difference and a real impact.

It is going to take a multi-agency approach from the Government. It is not going to get repaired by sticking plasters. We need a root and branch review. We need full support from the Department of Health and the Minister for Health to drive this issue once and for all. It might be classed as unseen or unheard of but it is out there and it is very serious. It affects hundreds of thousands of families. It is not acceptable.

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