A magistrate gave a man one month to sort out his sick sister’s severe dental problems or face a report for neglect.

Presiding over a public health sitting, Magistrate Jacqueline Padovani told the accused his sister, who suffers from severe dental and stomach problems apart from being psychologically sick, needed urgent medical attention.

The man is charged with keeping their house in a dirty and unsanitary state.

The case first came to light when neighbours reported foul smells coming from their Sliema house and Health Department employees went to investigate. When the magistrate held an on-site inquiry, she met the woman, underweight and with rotten teeth. The house was eventually cleaned up and the magistrate kept tabs on the case to ensure the woman got the help she required.

However, the man still seemed to be dragging his feet on the matter and the magistrate was forced to warn him.

The man told the court this week he had made an appointment with a dentist but when the pair arrived at the clinic, another dentist in the same surgery told him the technician taking the X-rays was not there and so the visit had to be postponed.

But the magistrate pointed out the accused had been playing such games for the past year and a half, making appointments and then coming up with excuses when the dental work was not carried out.

The magistrate said she knew for a fact that a dentist could not work without X-ray equipment and, so, she considered the excuse made by the accused to be frivolous, adding that, probably, the woman’s teeth needed to be removed.

The court also referred to the woman’s stomach infections, pointing out these were likely to be the consequence of the severe state of her teeth.

Had the accused experienced even one millionth of the pain his sister was in, he would have taken immediate and direct action instead of letting it drag on like this for the past 18 months.

The man argued his sister was an adult – they are both in their late 40s – and could make her own choices and he could not force her to do anything. However, the magistrate insisted he was responsible for her well being because she lived with him and suffered from a psychological disorder.

At this point she warned him he would face a report for neglect should he not sort out her dental problems within a month.

The names are not being mentioned to protect their identity.