Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome my former colleague, Ms Mary Flaherty. Deputy Ó Caoláin and I are the only two Deputies who served with her in the House. We would be delighted to have her back here at any time in the future.

I have two brief questions, the first of which was raised by Mr. Finlay. The issue of consistent poverty cannot be ignored. There is a perception that consistent poverty is in disadvantaged communities. Sadly, however, I am seeing it every day in my own constituency with middle class families who cannot put bread and butter on the table. Much of the time it is because of a lack of knowledge and information on where to turn and who to turn to. It is not just a matter of investing in such services, it is also about communicating more effectively what supports and services are available. People do not know where to turn.

When one probes issues with families, one can identify where problems are arising. This comes back to the other point I have regarding public health nurses. If public health nurses are brought into the child and family support agency their role will be abolished.

Rather than using the public health nurse, the system is creating a nurse for child health and community health that would deal with anyone over the age of 18 and older people. One loses the advantage that a public health nurse has because the reality is neglect and abuse is not defined by age. Often abuse in a house can be across the age range. Some structure needs to be found to deal with this. The public health nurses need to be brought in at the beginning of this whole process. What type of a structure do the delegations believe needs to be put in place? Everyone agrees public health nurses have a valuable role to play. If that job is split between dealing with children under the age of 18 and those over 18, I believe some of the impact and usefulness of their role will be lost.