Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 26 June 2025
49. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health for an update on the efforts to reform the oral healthcare, including the new national oral health policy, Smile and Sláinte; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34600/25]
View answerThe National Oral Health Policy, Smile Agus Sláinte, sets out the vision for oral healthcare services in Ireland and has two key goals:
1. To provide the supports to enable every individual to achieve their personal best oral health; and
2. To reduce oral health inequalities across the population, by enabling vulnerable people to access oral healthcare and improve their oral health.
Budget 2025 allocated €2m for 2025, increasing to €4m in 2026, to continue the implementation of the National Oral Health Policy. The implementation plan for the first phase of policy rollout to end-2027 is being finalised by my Department and the HSE, following targeted consultation in Q3 2024. Once published, the plan will set out the priorities for this first phase of implementation, which include reform of services for adults and children.
This Budget 2025 investment is also supporting the recruitment of an additional 15 HSE oral healthcare staff to deliver oral healthcare in the community for children and for adult medical card holders with additional needs, thereby supporting access to the current model of service while policy implementation proceeds.
The Policy also contains a range of strategic workforce planning actions to increase national workforce capacity, in support of improving patient access to care. My Department has recently finalised a workforce census framework for oral healthcare and work is progressing on a scoping project for a mid-level professional grade for oral healthcare, as an additional measure to increase capacity in the workforce. A programme to encourage the redistribution of oral healthcare professionals to underserved areas is also a key action in the Policy. For oral healthcare professionals working in isolated rural areas far away from centres of education, it will be essential to provide support in the form of mentoring programmes as well as by introducing long-distance and accessible continuing development education programmes.
