Survey Reveals a Quarter of Irish Dentists Planning Staff Redundancies
A survey has revealed that a quarter of dentists in Ireland are planning to cut staff numbers over the course of the next year.
The survey also revealed that a fifth of dentists are thinking about selling their practice.
The Irish Dental Association has expressed fears that 1,000 jobs could be lost this year as a result of a decrease in patient numbers caused by cutbacks in the Medical Card scheme.
Fintan Hourihan, chief executive of the Irish Dental Association, said that the recession, coupled with cutbacks in the dental scheme, have caused patient numbers to fall, which has impacted on dentists. The survey revealed that 86% of dentists suffered a decrease in turnover, with more than half of dentists suffering a fall of over 20 percent.
Mr Hourihan said that there have already been 2,000 job losses over the course of the last two years and urged the government to act to change the system as soon as possible.
One in five dentists also wants to sell their practice, according to the study; however, there are few buyers out there. John O’Connor, from Omega Financial Management, said that almost 40 percent of dentists are planning to work until they reach the age of 70 as a result of cutbacks to the pension scheme.
The survey was carried out by Omega Financial Management on behalf of the Irish Dental Association.
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