One in six people are waiting over three months for a non-urgent dental appointment, according to the Irish Dental Association (IDA).
It said that half of patients are waiting longer than three months for specialist care.
A survey for the association's annual conference in Kilkenny today, shows that almost 60% of dentists report that they have experienced problems in hiring a dentist in the last year.
The association has expressed concern that patients are finding it increasingly difficult to access essential private and public care.
IDA President Dr Eamon Croke said that 25% of dentists are not in a position to take on new private adult patients.
He said that of IDA members who operate the public Dental Treatment Service Scheme (DTSS) 80% say they can no longer take on or see new medical card patients.
Dr Croke aid that the DTSS contract, in its current form, is not fit for purpose and affects the most vulnerable in society.
The IDA says there is a recruitment and capacity crisis across the dental sector.
It follows a recent vote of no confidence tabled against Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly and Department of Health officials at the Irish Dental Association's pre-conference AGM, which took place last week.
The number of private dentists submitting claims in the DTSS is reducing, according to the reply to a parliamentary question to the HSE by Sinn Féin health spokesperson David Cullinane.
In 2021, there were 689 dentists submitting claims to the scheme compared to 634 last year.
Partial figures from October 2020 show there were 815 dentists submitting claims under the scheme that year.
However, the Department of Health has said that the rate of dentists leaving the DTSS has now slowed and the number in the scheme was 1,173 at the start of May.
Adult medical card holders have access to dental services under the DTSS through care provided by private dentists that hold DTSS contracts with the HSE.
The Department of Health also said that at the end of March, the number of dentists on the dental register had increased compared to March 2022.
It put the figure at 3,472 which it said is the highest ever.
The department also said that staffing levels in the HSE in the public dental service have increased with 815 whole time equivalents last December.
It said it acknowledged there can be challenges in recruiting in the dental and oral health professions.
The department said that last May, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly introduced a range of measures for adult medical card holders using the DTSS to reintroduce elements of preventative care and increased fees paid to contractors for most treatment items by 40-60%.
The HSE said it acknowledges the challenges associated with the Dental Treatment Service Scheme currently.
It said that where access to a dentist is difficult, local services assist patients who make enquires and make lists of DTSS contractors available to medical card holders.
The HSE said that in exceptional circumstances, it directly assists patients to access emergency dental treatment by contacting private contractors or arranging treatment through HSE employed dentists.
