Dentists issue warnings about ‘pop-up’ consultations in hotels

One overseas provider, Smiles Turkey, said it had cancelled a separate event in Belfast after “concerns were expressed about its legality”.

It said there had been a “misunderstanding” and it had intended to provide “a non-clinical commercial and information event”.

“Our sales representatives were not going to conduct physical or intra-oral examinations of patients’ mouths, teeth or gums. Cancellation should not be interpreted as an admission that the event was unlawful,” it added.

The Ramada Hotel, where the pop-up was to take place, was approached for comment.

However, the BDA says pop-up consultations often go “beyond merely the marketing of overseas dental services”.

Brennan, who is a dentist in Strabane, said he had attended one such event and had his teeth examined.

“Once you examine a patient’s mouth, that’s dentistry,” he explained.

“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.”

He also said many of the dentists doing the examinations were often “coming 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”, Brennan explained.

The BDA also said more patients in Northern Ireland were presenting with “serious dental complications” after having received dental treatment overseas.

“This has typically followed an initial dental consultation advertised and held in a Northern Ireland venue.”