Dublin dental patients wait six years
Dublin Sinn Féin councillors have said this week that the crisis in orthodontic service waiting lists in the Northern Area Health Board region has left children waiting up to six years to have treatment and has ``ruined children's teeth''.
In a joint statement, Councillors Nicky Kehoe and Christy Burke called on Health Minister Micheál Martin to step in to reduce the backlog of orthodontic cases as a matter of urgency.
Kehoe says that many of his constituents have ``more chance of seeing a tooth fairy than a dentist in the next five years''. ``Orthodontic services seem to be at a virtual standstill and the Health Board is in denial, but I have families coming to me with children now aged 15 and 16 who have been waiting since they were 11 to have their teeth straightened or braces fixed. The delays are crippling our children's teeth.''
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