Marian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim, Independent)

I thank Deputy Burke for raising this important matter again tonight. This might be the third time he has raised this issue. I can see he is determined to highlight it. The issue is important.

I am taking this on behalf of my colleague, the Minister, Deputy James Lawless. The Government is firmly committed to ensuring that our healthcare system is supported by a steady and sustainable pipeline of highly skilled graduates. My Department, in collaboration with the Department of Health, the Higher Education Authority and the higher education institutions, plays a central role in delivering the education and training infrastructure needed to meet the evolving demands of the healthcare workforce, including in critical areas such as oral healthcare and dentistry. Ensuring adequate capacity to train future dentists is part of our broader commitment to workforce planning that supports the health and well-being of our population.

Until this year, approximately 60 places were available each year to Irish and EU students on dentistry courses. My Department recognises that this represents a limited training pipeline at a time when the demand for oral healthcare, both clinical and preventative, is increasing nationally.

The number of places offered is a matter for the higher education institutions, in line with their autonomy. However, I do acknowledge that due to a high level of practical work there can be material constraints on the number of students who can be accepted onto dentistry courses. While my Department does not set quotas for student places, we work closely with the Department of Health and the HEA to explore how capacity can be sustainably expanded in key health disciplines, including dentistry.

In 2023, the HEA carried out a targeted capacity expansion exercise across priority healthcare areas. One key outcome was the establishment of new a dentistry programme, to which the Deputy referred, a new bachelor of dental surgery at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, RCSI, commencing in 2025. This new programme will follow a community-based model of dental education and will provide at least 20 new dentistry places per annum for Irish and EEA students, significantly enhancing national training capacity. This expansion represents a landmark 33% increase in student intake and clearly demonstrates my Department’s and this Government’s firm commitment to strengthening the oral healthcare workforce and supplying the graduates needed for a modern, accessible health system. As evidence of this, I understand the RCSI programme will expand next year with a further 15 potential places by 2027. I think there is a further eight next year and seven the following year, to bring it to 35 in total thereafter.

I reaffirm my Department’s commitment to working with all relevant stakeholders to ensure that any future expansion of dental education is grounded in evidence, responds to national needs and is delivered in a sustainable manner. I am informed that the Department of Health is examining the feasibility of a new mid-level oral health professional grade. The outcomes of this work, due to be published shortly, may have further implications for the number and type of training places needed in the coming years across oral healthcare.

See this speech in context