An 84-year-old woman who broke her front tooth was told she would have to wait six weeks for an emergency dental appointment in Tralee.
Councillor Deirdre Ferris told the recent meeting of the HSE South West Regional Health Forum that the woman, who is considered high-risk because she is pre-diabetic, was left with an open wound.
The earliest emergency appointment available at the HSE dental clinic in Tralee was six weeks.
Cllr Ferris said the woman’s family contacted every dentist in the county who accepts medical card patients, but none could offer her an appointment.
She eventually got one in Foynes in Limerick.
Cllr Ferris said the situation highlights a lack of dentists and longstanding difficulties for medical card patients trying to access dental care in Kerry’s HSE clinics.
The executive said its dental service in Kerry provides emergency care for children under 16 and for adults with special needs, with children usually seen on the same day.
Adults with medical cards who cannot access an HSE dentist and who are suffering acute pain or infection can receive emergency treatment through the Dental Treatment Service Scheme (DTSS).
The HSE said waiting times for these emergency appointments are usually three to four weeks.
It said the service is under pressure, particularly in the Killarney area, due to staffing shortages, population growth, and increased demand for emergency care.
The HSE says steps are being taken to reduce waiting times, including efforts to increase staffing at Killarney Dental Clinic and temporarily redirecting some patients to clinics in Killorglin and Tralee.
It also said the service is operating under significant resource constraints and that reform forms part of the national oral health policy, Smile agus Sláinte.
The dental service in Kerry is currently delivered by 11 general dental surgeons and two senior dental surgeons, most of whom work part time.
Despite the official figures, Cllr Ferris told the meeting that what she is hearing from constituents does not reflect the HSE response.
In response, the HSE said private dentists can increase the number of medical card patients they treat under the Dental Treatment Service Scheme.
When asked about plans to increase the number of dentists in HSE clinics in Kerry, the representative said the issue would fall under the wider implementation of the national oral health policy and that further information on recruitment would be provided.
