Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke has contacted the Romanian authorities to find out how the country controls the authenticity of dental diplomas following reports of individuals with Romanian credentials who want to practice in Belgium but have limited knowledge of dentistry, according to Euractiv.
Belgian news media recently reported that almost half of the dentists who started working in Belgium last year were foreigners, over one-third of whom obtained their diploma in another European country. Romanian diplomas account for a quarter of foreign diplomas.
But “When the candidates with Romanian diplomas appear before the accreditation committee [which is required for them to work in Belgium], they can’t answer the simplest questions,” Frank Herrebout, president of the Flemish Dentists’ Association, the organization that sounded the alarm, said, Belga reported.
According to the association, applicants with Romanian diplomas appear to know very little about dental care. It has even accused public schools in Romania of selling diplomas, particularly to non-EU nationals, of whom many are Tunisians.
However, because Belgium must recognize EU-issued diplomas, it cannot automatically reject candidates just because they hold Romanian diplomas.
To address this, Vandenbroucke has thus contacted Romanian authorities to see how they were monitoring the quality of dentists’ diplomas.
“We have been in contact with our Romanian colleagues, discussions have been constructive, and solutions are being worked on to ensure the quality and authenticity of dentists’ diplomas,” Vandenbroucke said in a press release on Thursday.
He added that Belgium considers medical cooperation with Romania “very important”, as “many Romanian doctors and health professionals are working in Belgium”.
“In this way, we […] are showing solidarity with each other and helping healthcare professionals from all over Europe to alleviate the shortage of healthcare workers we face. What is important is that the quality of care for the patient always comes first,” he added.