Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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21. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide the orthodontics budget directly to Letterkenny University Hospital instead of to Sligo University Hospital, and if he will clarify why he is allowing a situation to arise at Letterkenny University Hospital where the necessary infrastructure and staff are not being provided to the orthodontic department there, and as a result clinics are being cancelled on a continuous basis and waiting lists are growing; why there is no radiography equipment available in-house for the orthodontic department at the hospital; when a full complement of six dental nurses will be made available to the orthodontics department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42719/15]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Orthodontics services provided by the HSE in the North West are based at Sligo University Hospital. A satellite service is provided to Letterkenny University Hospital. The unit in Letterkenny University Hospital has 3 Orthodontic Specialists and one Orthodontic Specialist who visits from Sligo once a week. This service is led by a Consultant Orthodontist based in Sligo who also visits Letterkenny one day per week. The HSE has no plans to change the funding structure of this service.

Oral/Dental Radiology is currently provided off-site due to a flooding incident in July 2013. Plans are at an advanced stage to begin the process of refurbishing the Radiology Department at Letterkenny University Hospital and returning the different elements of the service to their original location. Works are due to start in mid-2016, with refurbishment works estimated to last for a period of 12 months. There are currently four funded Dental Nurse posts in the Unit in Letterkenny University Hospital and any further staff appointments must be accommodated within the available budget for the service.