Scene and Heard Productions: Up The Déise

July 31, 2026
|
Posted By: Swords Orthodontics

Nothing really to do with orthodontics for today’s post, just an out of the blue mention for an organisation that might be of interest to you.

It popped out of the blue when it came to my attention – as an orthodontic practice in Ireland, Swords Ortho has to comply with a wide variety of regulations (employment law, infection control, dental certification, fire safety compliance, general health and safety, waste management, X-ray equipment compliance, disability access, continuing professional development and so on).  

To help us stay on top of things, we have a small army of advisors and contractors who come and go behind the scenes to keep our services compliant and I was phoning one of them during the week and on my phone’s display up came the logo for an organisation called Scene and Heard Productions. It was one of those acting mask symbols but with a pair of headphones. I thought I had a wrong number but that instant the call connected and I was about to apologise for mis-dialling and interrupting some random guy’s day but it turned out I’d called the right number and after finishing my business enquiry I asked him about the logo that surprised me when I was expecting something connected to his business.

Scene and Heard is a Waterford-based theatre company that involves adults with intellectual disabilities to produce adventurous and funny plays. They have a production coming up in the autumn called Up The Déise about a team of hurlers with Down syndrome chasing an All-Ireland title.

If you’re in Waterford, or have friends or family there, I think you should look them up and go to their show.

https://sceneandheardproductions.ie

 

Related Blog Posts
September 13, 2026
"What's my IOTN?" IOTN explained for Irish Orthodontics, how it affects you and your children

I get a lot of patients asking about their IOTN, so I thought I should explain it a bit and why it’s important in Ireland.

 

 

It stands for Index of Orthodontic Treatment Need. It was developed in the late 80s in the UK, based on a Swedish model from the early 70s with the intention of having an objective comparison of orthodontic situations to decide what would be a reasonable use of public healthcare to provide dental treatment to correct the problem.

The most commonly part of the Index is known as the Dental Health Component (DHC).

There’s a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 …

September 8, 2026
They did, they did, rock us
Brian Keville of Qween

Dentistry in general, and orthodontics and the various specialties in particular, can be an isolating sort of profession. You spend most of your time and energy working and thinking in a zone within the reach of your relaxed arms, in a location about the size of a small spare bedroom. …

September 6, 2026
Didn't know she didn't smile

Had a young patient in for the first time last week, accompanied by her mum. They both knew what needed fixed - a top tooth biting inside the lower teeth instead of outside them: a crossbite.

I went through my usual orthodontic assessment for a new patient, measuring this and that, but I also asked “would your teeth stop you smiling for a photo?”

“Yes.”

I could see her mum’s face change tone, and she said “you never said that, you never told me you didn’t smile.”

At the end of the appointment, after she’d left the room her mum said the same thing to …