Dentists to go on strike: 'The Ministry is indifferent to our demands'

Following family physicians who recently went on strike to protest their working conditions and recent regulations, it is now the turn of dentists. 

Health Services Union President Özlem Akarken announced that dentists working in Oral and Dental Health Centers, Oral and Dental Health Hospitals, and state hospitals will hold a strike action on February 14, 2025. Dentists are demanding improvements in working conditions, the provision of necessary materials for quality service, and an increase in the number of support staff.

According to the report in T24, Akarken stated in a written statement that for years, dentists have been voicing their concerns that "their workloads have increased, working conditions have deteriorated, and the obstacles they face while trying to practice their profession have become increasingly unbearable."

Stating that dentists, who cannot perform their procedures efficiently due to poor-quality materials, constantly malfunctioning equipment, and staff shortages, are also causing grievances for the public receiving healthcare services, Akarken noted the following:

"Today, dentists are in great solitude and are desperately demanding that our working conditions be improved, and we stand with them. The Ministry of Health has remained indifferent to our demands for years. We are coming together to raise our voices to change this situation. Physicians cannot be subjected to regulations and circulars that create grievances. The legislation has now become a system that hinders the provision of healthcare services, where every professional group working in health institutions, especially dentists and other physicians, cannot find the reward for their labor. Enough is enough. Among the primary problems faced by dentists are the increasing workload, the obligation to use poor-quality materials and equipment, the lack of support staff, and the inability to implement the Four-Handed Dentistry Rule. Furthermore, issues such as injustice in additional payments, loss of financial rights, and citizens' inability to access specialist dentists are increasing the unrest among dentists. These negative aspects in the long hours of duty of dentists have become factors that directly affect the health of both healthcare workers and patients."