Mr Patsy McGlone (Mid Ulster): To ask the Minister of Health (i) for his assessment of the level of access to NHS dental services in rural constituencies, including Mid Ulster; and (ii) to detail any steps that are being taken to address regional disparities.
Minister of Health: The General Dental Services Annual Statistics for 2024/25 show that there are 63 dentists per 100,000 resident population in Mid Ulster, which is the same as the average for the whole of Northern Ireland, and 56% of people in Mid Ulster are registered with a dentist, which is higher than the Northern Ireland average of 54%.
However, it is acknowledged that access to General Dental Services is challenging across Northern Ireland at present and I am aware that some patients, particularly those not currently registered with a dentist, are finding it more difficult to obtain an appointment with a Health Service dentist.
Under current General Dental Services Regulations, dental practitioners operate as self-employed, independent contractors who determine both the amount of time they dedicate to delivering Health Service care, and the location from which they provide it.
To help improve access to Health Service dentistry, an additional £7 million has been invested in General Dental Services in 2025/26. The investment has allowed for the continuation of the Enhanced Child Dental Examination Scheme and a 30% enhancement on fees paid to dentists for Health Service fillings, extractions and root canal treatments. £1.6 million has also been allocated to support dental practitioners who continue to provide Health Service dental care to their patients.
The Dental Access Scheme also continues to be available to unregistered patients in urgent need of treatment. The addresses and contact details of participating practices can be found at the link below.
https://online.hscni.net/our-work/dental-services/dental-access-scheme/
Longer term, the Department’s Health and Social Care NI three-year plan includes a commitment to the reform of General Dental Services. An action plan and programme of work toward this reform will be in place by April 2027. While that work is progressed consideration is being given to other actions which could be taken to improve access to Health Service dental care for both registered and unregistered patients.
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