Dentists in Northern Ireland are issuing warnings about illegal "pop-up" dental consultation events being held in hotels, which they say constitute the practice of dentistry without proper registration. Paul Brennan, chair of the Northern Ireland branch of the British Dental Association (BDA), expressed deep concern over these events, stating that patients' mouths are often examined, a practice that requires registration with regulatory bodies.
The BDA has cautioned that when such dental activities occur in unregistered venues and by unregistered practitioners, it can be classified as illegal practice. The Northern Ireland Hotels Federation (NIHF) has reportedly shared the BDA's guidance with its members.
In the UK, any individual practicing dentistry must be registered with the General Dental Council (GDC), and any venue where dentistry takes place must be registered with the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA). The RQIA has indicated it has received information about 21 "unregistered entities" that have organized consultation events since October 2023. The authority stated that when concerns arise regarding the provision or promotion of dental tourism treatments in Northern Ireland, cease and desist letters have been issued to the overseas dental practices involved, rather than the hosting venues.
Following inquiries by BBC News NI, two upcoming events in Belfast were cancelled, either by the overseas provider or the hotel. One overseas provider, Smiles Turkey, stated it cancelled a separate event in Belfast after "concerns were expressed about its legality." The company explained that there had been a "misunderstanding" and that the intended event was non-clinical and informational. Smiles Turkey emphasized that its representatives were not going to conduct physical examinations and that the cancellation should not be interpreted as an admission of unlawful activity.
The BDA, however, maintains that these pop-up consultations frequently extend beyond mere marketing. Brennan, who is also a practicing dentist, recounted attending one such event where his teeth were examined. He clarified that "Once you examine a patient's mouth, that's dentistry. You don't have to do anything on them apart from an examination. Someone looking in your mouth and telling you, I think you need x, y and z, is dentistry."
Brennan also pointed out that many dentists conducting these examinations are often from abroad and are not registered in the UK. "They may be registered in their own countries, but they're often not registered here, so they're actually carrying out dentistry illegally," he explained.
The BDA has also reported an increase in patients in Northern Ireland presenting with "serious dental complications" after receiving dental treatment overseas. These cases have typically followed an initial dental consultation that was advertised and held within a Northern Ireland venue.