Social Democrats councillor Elisa O’Donovan has strongly criticised unacceptably long waiting lists for orthodontic treatments for children under the age of 16 in the Mid-West region.
Cllr O’Donovan, who is the party’s general election candidate in Limerick city, said:
“Figures I received from the HSE are deeply concerning. There are currently 676 young people on the waiting list with the Mid-West Orthodontic Service who have yet to commence treatment.
“The average waiting time for starting treatment now stands at four years. Given that a typical course takes an average of 18 months to two years, this means orthodontic treatments can be over seven years from referral to completion.
“I have been informed of cases where children referred in their first year of secondary school are only completing their orthodontic treatments in the second year of college. As early intervention can be key in dealing with orthodontic issues, hard-press families are being forced to pay for expensive private treatments.
“The HSE are understood to be finding it difficult to recruit specialist orthodontists for the Mid-West, with a recent recruitment campaign failing to attract any applicants. As a result, plans are now proceeding for an international recruitment drive to employ two orthodontists within the service.
“The need for regional development of orthodontic services could not be more urgent. In fact, a report from 20 years ago called for the reinstatement of a training programme for orthodontists in the Mid-West and for measures to address the insufficiency of public orthodontic services in Limerick.
“Not only was no action taken at the time, but no review has been carried out since.
“This speaks to the wider issue of underinvestment and poor regulation of public dentistry services in Ireland, which continue to be one of the most neglected areas of the health service.”
October 4, 2024