Mairéad Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein)

This is an issue we have been discussing for many years. In my home county, Galway, not a single dental practice is taking on new patients with medical cards. This is an issue I have been raising for some time. Consistently over recent years, people in dire straits have come to me, whether for themselves or their children, to try to gain access to medical care. A child in absolute agony might be told there is no dentist who can take him or her but that he or she can be put on a list with a waiting period of several months or a year. Anybody who has ever experienced a toothache will realise it is not something a child can live with day in, day out. It is not a good enough response.

I have reached out to the HSE on this and the response was that people should look in other counties. That is not feasible or practical. The response is not an answer to the question. I am sure that if the people concerned asked about services in other counties, they would find it very difficult to find a dentist who would give the medical care with a medical card. Really and truly, what we need now is a plan.

Another dental issue I was contacted about concerns a woman who flagged with me that her young son, who has had significant dental issues throughout his primary schooling, will not be seen within the school system until he is in sixth class. The family has already incurred many dental expenses for which it has had to save. Again, that is not good enough. When it comes to dental care, or any form of healthcare, treatment for an immediate need should not be based on what money you have in your back pocket to fork out for it. The reality is that everybody, including every child, deserves dental treatment when they need it. Therefore, we need to see a plan put in place to ensure people from across Galway and other counties have access to dental care when they need it.

See this speech in context