The Dental Council of Trinidad and Tobago is urging Minister of Health Terrence Deyalsingh to follow through on his promise and present a motion in Parliament to amend the Dental Profession Act.
This follows questions posed to Deyalsingh by Independent Senator Anthony Vieira in the Upper House yesterday.
Vieira, an attorney for the council, asked Deyalsingh if he was aware of “stumbling blocks” that are in the way of prosecuting “quack dentists”. The minister, however, said this was not under his ministry’s purview.
Minister Deyalsingh told the Senate that as of April 17 this year, the Health Ministry had received no complaints regarding unregistered persons presenting themselves as dentists. He advised Vieira to raise his concerns with the Dental Council of T&T, as his ministry has no place in prosecuting matters.
But in a telephone interview with Guardian Media, president of the Dental Council, Dr Dharmendra Rohit, said the organisation has struggled to prosecute unregistered or unlicensed dentists, in part because it requires approval from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to do so.
He said to punish these individuals, the council ought to have a complaint from a patient. Then, the police must investigate the case within six months of the report being made. The evidence should then be sent to the DPP’s Office which can grant the council a fiat (legal permission to prosecute). However, he said this is often a challenge for the council, as matters lapse due to the police’s failure to investigate, or the DPP’s failure to grant a fiat, leaving them powerless.
“I have been on the council, this is my 12th to 13th year, and before that, we’ve been begging minister after minister after minister to get these changes,” he said.
“Every year we meet with him (Deyalsingh), and he says ‘yes, it’s coming soon, it’s coming soon’ and it’s never happening,” he added.
Guardian Media received a copy of official recommendations sent to Deyalsingh in October 2016 and signed by the council’s then-president Dr Anil Siewrattan. However, they have not yet been ratified.
“We are desperately waiting for the minister to bring our legislative changes in the Act of the Dental Council to Parliament to get it approved and passed so that the council could actually have the ability to address the unregistered practitioners of dentistry,” he said.
Among their many recommendations, the council would like a Code of Conduct to govern the way dentists are required to perform; the establishment of a Dental Enrollment Committee to track registered and unregistered dentists; and the establishment of an Advisory Committee on Dental Auxiliaries. The council would also like their powers to be widened, as its authority is limited in how it can respond to a person found guilty of unprofessional conduct. Currently, they can censure or reprimand dentists, suspend them, or have them removed from the register or roll.
Meanwhile, Rohit challenged Deyalsingh’s claim that he had received no reports of unregistered dentists operating in T&T. He said the ministry should have a member appointed to their board, but they have not had one in six years, which is why they are not aware.