Dentists are up in arms over what they claim is an embargo on foreign practitioners seeking employment on the Island.

Several dentists told The Royal Gazette last night they are overworked to the point of exhaustion because overseas specialists are not being granted work permits.

The row came to a head following the refusal by Government yesterday to grant a Canadian dentist permission to work on the Island.

They blamed the Bermuda Dental Board, which advises Government on issues affecting the industry, of acting “incompetently” in a manner which makes the entire profession look bad.

They called for the resignation of Board chairman Dr. Richard Cann, who they alleged had “mismanaged” recent matters involving the possible bringing in of foreign specialists.

The news comes after a Supreme Court judge ruled last December that the Dental Board had been “biased” when it gave English dentist Dr. David Thompson a failing grade in a practical examination which - if he had passed - would have allowed him to work in Bermuda.

The Royal Gazette was unable to contact Dr. Cann or Health and Social Services Minister Nelson Bascome for comment last night.

The Immigration Department denied the application for a work permit yesterday of Canadian dentist Dr. Lat Waitis.

When questioned last night about the rejection, Chief Immigration Officer Martin Brewer declined to discuss individual cases.

But Dr. Jim Fay, who was hoping Dr. Waitis would be able to come and help with his workload at the Paget Dental Group, said most dentists in Bermuda had twice as many patients as they could handle and added that he thought the Dental Board had exacerbated the problem by recommending the work permit be refused.

“It just doesn't make any sense. If there was any time that we needed dentists then this is it because the vast majority of dentists are screaming that we are overworked and don't have time to do procedures.

“Everyone is pedalling as hard as they can just to keep up with the routine things, like cavity fillings. We have had dentists accused of all sorts of crimes in Bermuda and it still doesn't slow down their practices. That should tell you how undermanned we are.”

Dr. Fay said there was currently an urgent need for specialists to be brought in to the Island to handle some of the more high end procedures.

He said he was working four nights a week and at weekends just to keep on top of his workload.

Bermuda Dental Association president Dr. Laidlaw Fraser-Smith said members his committee had recently decided they had lost confidence in the ability of Dr. Cann to chair the Dental Board.

He said Dr. Cann should have resigned months ago after Justice Norma Wade-Miller ruled that the Board had been “prejudiced” when it failed Dr. Thompson.

“The Dental Board's restrictive actions on a variety of manpower issues have exacerbated the problems that many Bermudians find in obtaining timely access to dental care,” Dr. Fraser-Smith said.

“It has also repeatedly acted in an autonomous manner, refusing all attempts at dialogue with the Dental Association. The Board conducts their business in secrecy and the lack of dissemination of policy shifts place members of the Board at an advantage relative to other dentists in the community.”

Dr. Fraser-Smith added that he thought the entire dental profession “will be caught in the spotlight of public criticism as a result of the incompetence of the Dental Board”.

“In our opinion they are responsible for the manpower problem because they have repeatedly refused dentists to bring associates in from overseas.”

Another dentist, Dr. Len Wedlich, said he knew that some patients were having to wait up to four or five months for appointments.

He said he thought the Dental Board was “unrepresentative” of most dentists in Bermuda.

“I think we should all have a say in what is going on. We should have the right to decide on certain aspects of our profession and the board is just not representative of our view. They speak for just a small percentage.”

He said there was a competitive nature between the Association, which represents 22 dentists, and the Board, which has five members.

“The Board is not communicating with us at all. It feels like things are being held back. It is not a democratic process.”