Parents recall having to cut wires from their children’s mouths with pliers following the cessation of treatment by Oranmore-based Specialist Orthodontist, Dr Anne Hahessy.
Parents of patients of Dr Hahessy have called for guidance from the Minister of Health and The Dental Council in a meeting on Monday regarding future treatments.
The meeting saw patients come together to discuss the future implications following an order from The Dental Council of Ireland directed at Dr. Hahessy, to no longer engage in the practice of dentistry. What initially began as repeatedly cancelled appointments has now evolved to a situation where patients have been left with no guidance on what comes next, if and when refunds will be issued and even who can they turn to for future orthodontic treatment.
One mother, Cregmore resident Claire Cullinane, whose daughters, Ciara and Emma had been receiving much needed treatment for impacted teeth have been left high and dry.
“”There’s no contingency plan and no road map. I have called several orthodontists, many of whom do not want to get involved in the middle of a treatment started by someone else,” Claire said.
“I’ve been told to contact specialist Orthdontists, but I have not been told who is or who is not appropriate. Some just don’t have the expertise.”
Another mother, Amanda Sweeney, was given instructions over the phone on how to cut a wire from her daughter, Lauren’s, mouth.
“During the past twelve months, we have had numerous appointments cancelled and when I called in July to get an emergency appointment, as a wire had become loose, I was told there was no possibility of her being seen.
“As we were going on holidays the following week, I was given details over the phone on how to remove it myself and cut it with a pliers,” Amanda said.
Upon returning home, Amanda took her daughter to another Orthodontist who reviewed Lauren’s case and said she needed extensive treatment to correct an obvious jaw alignment problem, something that had never been discussed before.
Having paid €4,000 up front to Dr. Hahessy, Amanda now has to shell out a further €3,000 to a new Orthodontist to complete Lauren’s much needed treatment. Something Amanda says she is lucky to have, as many orthodontists are refusing to take on another person’s patient mid-treatment.
For Marie Howley, the reality of additional payments hanging overhead is of a huge concern.
Her son Luke, is “one of the lucky ones,” she says, as he is at the tail end of his treatment, but hard choices have to be made about the future of his teeth.
“Do we pay all this money, to get it taken off and pay for new treatment only to be told further down the line that we’re not getting anything back from the other place?
“We don’t have any more money to spend on the child’s mouth. I have two more children, one of my daughters need is even greater than Luke’s, but we have heard nothing from the public scheme. What do I do?”
The Orthodontist who has been looking at Luke’s case has told Marie that he, “can’t stand over the work someone else has done. In an ideal situation he would remove the device and reinsert one of his own at an additional payment cost to get the previous brace removed and reapplied.”
No road map
For former patients of Dr. Hahessy, the lack of “road map” and guidance from The Dental Council has been the worst part of the crisis. Following the closure of the clinic, parents report no communication from The Dental Council and are claiming that they have “washed their hands” of the situation. Upon contacting The Department of Health, Marie Howley received a reply stating that, “The Dental Council have reported that there are no patients in urgent need of care.”
“It was so upsetting to see the Department and The Dental Council say that, because how would they know? They haven’t answered anyone. No one has spoken to anyone from The Dental Council, so how do they know who is and isn’t urgent. They’re not talking to us at all, but yet they’re speaking on our behalf to The Department of Health,” Marie added.
With no advice on a resolution or refund, the parents of patients have been told that what’s happened is “unprecedented” and that TD’s have called for a change in legislation to avoid such an occurrence from happening again, but this doesn’t help those affected now.
“We do understand that there’s issues with the legality, but we don’t care, we just want to get it sorted,” said Marie Howley.
