Due to lack of manpower, the number of patients falls short of the target... Tae-ho Jeong “We must seek to improve treatment”

Of the 18 government-designated oral care centers for the disabled operated by medical institutions, 6 did not have a dedicated dentist, and 13 did not have a dedicated anesthesiologist.

Dental treatment for the disabled is more difficult and takes more time than treatment for the non-disabled, and it is pointed out that the salary of the medical staff at the oral treatment center for the disabled is much lower than the opening price, increasing the shortage of dedicated manpower.

According to a research report on oral care accessibility policy for the disabled conducted by Seoul National University Dental Hospital (Central Oral Care Center for the Disabled) with support from the Ministry of Health and Welfare in 2018, dental outpatient treatment for the disabled takes about 2.3 times as much time as that for non-disabled people.

The treatment time, including general anesthesia, is approximately 9.3 times higher than for non-disabled patients, and the difficulty of treating disabled patients as perceived by medical staff is approximately 4 times higher.

The treatment time, including general anesthesia, is approximately 9.3 times higher than for non-disabled patients, and the difficulty of treating disabled patients as perceived by medical staff is approximately 4 times higher.

The gap in dedicated manpower also affected treatment performance.

Last year, 960 million won of the 6.073 billion won budget for non-covered medical and operating expenses for regional oral centers for the disabled was unused.

The actual number of patients (34,000) was less than the number of patients scheduled (41,000), and the delay in opening some centers and the absence of facilities and manpower due to dentists and anesthesiologists taking leave are considered the main reasons.

Next year's budget for the Oral Treatment Center for the Disabled has been reduced by more than 10% compared to this year.

The budget for treatment and operating expenses for the Central Oral Center for the Disabled will be reduced from 2.016 billion won this year to 1.77 billion won next year, and for regional centers from 6.505 billion won to 5.61 billion won.

Next year's budget cut is a measure based on the results of this year's government integrated financial project performance evaluation.

Rep. Jeong Tae-ho said, "In order to smoothly respond to the demand for oral care for the disabled by expanding dedicated manpower, we need to come up with a plan to improve treatment, including realistic labor costs, and strengthen consultation with financial authorities."