Darren O'Rourke (Meath East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

During Covid, the Irish Wheelchair Association took over An Castan, the then HSE-run high support day service for adults with disabilities which is based on Commons Road, Navan. Some 14 adults from County Meath are greatly dependent on the service. It is a vital lifeline and support for those using it and their families. Before Christmas, services for all 14 of them were cut by 40%, from five days to three days. These are adults with considerable needs. It is a high-support service. The Irish Wheelchair Association states it is living with a recruitment and retention crisis. It understandably points to pay parity with HSE counterparts. These are vulnerable adults who need significant support. Many of them are immobile, incontinent or non-verbal. They are in desperate need of these services. The services need to be reinstated. It is very difficult to get an answer from the HSE, as all Members are aware. We need a ministerial or departmental intervention.

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