Local treatment planning
Understand the treatment and the local access route before requesting care. The treating practice assesses suitability and confirms any appointment, fees and follow-up.
Urgent dental safety
Seek urgent dental assessment for severe or persistent pain, increasing swelling, a knocked-out adult tooth or bleeding after an extraction. Call 999 or go to A&E for serious facial injury, heavy bleeding that will not stop, or severe mouth or neck swelling affecting breathing or swallowing. Do not wait for an Odenta response.
Registered patients should contact their own dentist first. For unregistered patients with urgent or pressing dental conditions on weekdays, consult the current Dental Access Scheme information linked by nidirect. At weekends and bank holidays, follow the official Emergency Dental Clinic instructions. These are assessed services, not a promise of a walk-in appointment.
Local patient planning
For urgent care in Strabane, explain whether you have a usual dentist, where recent treatment occurred and whether a referral is pending. Follow the appropriate current HSC instructions if seeking Northern Ireland public care; do not infer a cross-border entitlement from proximity. Confirm any clinic before travelling. After immediate treatment, request the findings and the next clinical steps so the general dentist or referral team continuing your care can work from an accurate handover.
Western Trust explains its community referral pathway, while HSC publishes separate urgent dental instructions. A referral being sent to Strabane does not itself reserve treatment there. If you have previously been treated in another jurisdiction, tell the receiving clinician and obtain the relevant findings. Do not assume that a geographically nearby service uses the same eligibility, registration or charging arrangements.
For a Strabane course, identify who coordinates appointments when a referring dentist and a community team are both involved. Check the venue stated by the clinical team and ask where any subsequent treatment or review would occur. If you expect to continue care elsewhere, obtain a clear written record and agree how questions after the initial visit will be handled. Keep routine registration separate from any limited assessment or procedure.
Ask dental practices about Health Service registration and use the official nidirect guidance to understand your options. Capacity varies, and a private visit does not necessarily include Health Service registration. Check whether each proposed treatment is under Health Service or private arrangements and request an explanation of costs before care.
Understand dental access in Northern IrelandLocal access sources checked . These independent public services are separate from DAN participation. Follow their current instructions.
A dental professional assesses the problem, your symptoms and relevant medical history.
Prompt assessment can identify whether pain, swelling, trauma or a broken restoration needs urgent treatment.
An online request is not a diagnosis and does not guarantee a same-day appointment.
Ask whether the quoted fee covers assessment only or includes X-rays and immediate treatment.
This is general information. Your clinician assesses the problem, explains alternatives and agrees your individual plan.
Read the complete emergency dentist guide
For dental practices
Apply through DAN, complete onboarding and control your public profile, services and patient requests. Your practice decides whether it can offer an appointment.
Apply to join DAN