Two Tipperary TD’s have called for urgent action to reduce waiting lists for children who need to be assessed for therapies.
Children and their parents in Tipperary are currently facing more than a three-year wait to be assessed for occupational or speech and language therapy.
This is having a knock on effect in delaying access to services without a diagnosis or report.
While intervention is key for any child with additional needs, most children are not being assessed in their formative years.
Sinn Féin Deputy Martin Browne raised the issue in the Dáil, asking about recruitment and waiting list times, as well as resources and services.
He spoke about the plight being faced by families here in the Premier County.
“One such parent, Linda, who was on Tipp FM this week, whose six-year-old son has been waiting on an assessment for 37 months, is another family failed by the system. He’s been left with no SNA in school and won’t qualify for one until he’s assessed.
“And what about four-year-old Ollie who has been on a waiting list for speech and language occupational therapy and waiting on assessment for nearly two years now.
“School is a year away and early intervention is key, but he’s not getting it.”
In reply, Minister for Children and Disability, Anne Rabbitte said that she acknowledged there is a problem and said in terms of recruitment, that the panel system is “not fit for purpose and is not working.”
“Yes, there is children waiting far too long on waiting lists and not getting the intervention.
“Out of the €350 million that was allocated and the access to care for waiting lists, I’m ensuring that we get a fair portion of that so we can actually provide public, private, therapy intervention, so that every child can get a result.
“I see children waiting on waiting lists as equally acute to the individual that needs a hip operation – that’s where we have to change our mindset and our culture within various departments.”
At a seperate Dáil session, Deputy Mattie McGrath said that the waiting lists have gone too long.
“Before Covid, people in my constituency, many of them had 13 or 14 month delays, now it’s gone to 37 months, three years.
“This is appalling, to tell a parent of a child with additional needs, waiting for assessments in many cases and then waiting for services to be told we don’t have any speech and language therapists, speech and language therapists tell us they can’t get jobs in the sector.
“Something is rotten in here and it’s just appalling discrimination. It’s just not acceptable to leave children with educational needs languish like this and fall behind and regress – they need to be respected as well as every other child in the system.”
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said that he was under the impression that waiting lists had in fact reduced, but would revert to Minister Rabbitte.
