Spain’s General Council of Dentists and the Conference of Dental Deans have thrown their support behind administrative appeals filed by scientific societies against the Ministry of Health’s July 9 resolutions, which rejected the creation of six official dental specialties. According to the official legal filings, the Ministry dismissed the establishment of official titles in Periodontology, Oral Surgery, Orthodontics, Paediatric Dentistry, Endodontics, and Prosthodontics without completing required professional, health, and university reports.
Appeals Challenge Ministry Rejections of Dental Specialties
The disputed resolutions issued on July 9 by the Directorate General of the Professional Regulation of the Ministry of Health halted the procedures necessary to create the six official health science specialty titles. In response, the Spanish Society of Periodontology and Osseointegration (SEPA), the Spanish Society of Oral Surgery (SECIB), the Spanish Society of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics (SEDO), the Spanish Society of Paediatric Dentistry (SEPO), the Spanish Association of Endodontics (AEDE), and the Spanish Society of Stomatological Prosthetics and Aesthetics (SEPES) launched formal administrative challenges.
According to the appealing organizations, the Ministry’s decisions failed to fulfill mandatory legal steps. The groups state that authorities did not complete the required professional and academic reports, omitted the mandatory proportionality test, and failed to open an audience procedure with the applicant entities. Furthermore, the societies assert they received no requests to correct or reformulate proposals deemed incompatible with Specialized Health Training (FSE) regulations, cutting off any opportunity to adapt their training projects.
At the center of the dispute is how specialized dental training should fit within Spain’s existing legal frameworks. Without a specific Royal Decree tailored to the unique characteristics of European dental practice, the professional bodies argue that official titles must adjust to the FSE legal framework outlined in Royal Decree 589/2022. This framework governs specialized residency programs, including special resident employment relationships, resident remuneration, supervised clinical work, tutoring, and progressive responsibility.
However, the scientific societies emphasize that adapting the medical residency model cannot mean blindly transferring a system designed for large hospital-based medical specialties straight to dentistry. According to the professional groups, specialized dental care takes place primarily in dental clinics, university centers, and outpatient units rather than large inpatient hospital wards.
SEPA, SECIB, SEDO, SEPO, SEPES, and AEDE are urging the Ministry to lead the development of a fully regulated, paid, accredited, and evaluated residency model that fits clinical realities. This framework could incorporate university dental clinics, public health centers, and accredited hospitals, provided they guarantee resident recruitment, proper compensation, effective assistance, supervision, and progressive autonomy.
Legal Framework and European Union Standards
The organizations point out that Law 44/2003 on the Regulation of Healthcare Professions (LOPS) explicitly allows for the adaptation of general residency principles to particular healthcare professions, including dentistry. Article 20.4 and the fourth transitory provision of the LOPS acknowledged that not all specialized training originated from a hospital-centric structure, giving the government a mandate to make necessary adaptations.
This structural difficulty was highlighted by the Council of State in its Opinion 204/2022 issued on June 9 during the processing of Royal Decree 589/2022. The advisory body warned that the rigid configuration of the Spanish system could block dentists from obtaining recognized specialties that already exist in other European Union member states, potentially impacting the free movement of professionals across borders.
Next Steps and Calls for Dialogue
The scientific societies and the General Council of Dentists maintain that the core issue is not a lack of distinct dental fields or training needs, but rather the absence of a suitable integration framework within Spain’s FSE system. Their administrative appeals ask the Ministry to annul the July 9 resolutions, retroactively restore the procedures, issue the mandatory reports, conduct proportionality tests, and allow the reformulation of training models.
Expressing a continued commitment to institutional dialogue and collaboration, the entities have urged the Ministry of Health to estimate their requests, reopen the proceedings, and work alongside autonomous communities, universities, the General Council of Dentists, and scientific societies to build a viable, publicly guaranteed dental residency model aligned with European standards.
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