Clare Mother Facing Significant Difficulty Accessing Dental Services For Autistic Son

An Ennis mother claims her family have been left heartbroken in their bid to access dental services for her son with special needs. Michelle Mannion is the mother of thirteen year old Darragh, who is living with autism, Daragh is also non-verbal and due to his high sensory needs, he can suffers from frequent bouts of extreme anxiety. After realising Daragh was experiencing significant pain in August, the Mannions visited a HSE dentist at UHL where he was diagnosed with an acute oral issue which required treatment under general anasthetic. However the family have not unable so to access care in the public service so far and have to date shelled out €13,000 on medical bills in the private sector. Michelle says Daragh is being forced to suffer in silence by a broken system.