Mary Moran (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Leo Varadkar, and thank him for his presentation. I wish to raise a few points. Nearly all of us present live in the Border area and have similar interests; therefore, the same issues are arising. However, one cannot overemphasise the need for services. I live in Dundalk and there has always been a good link-up between it and Newry in the provision of maternity services.

I have raised a matter with the Minister previously, namely, the provision of psychological services, particularly for children with intellectual disabilities. As I say constantly, there is no child psychiatrist in County Louth for children with an intellectual disability. It is heartbreaking to see the number of people who are trying to access services. There is a correlation between the North and the South in some regards, but could something be done to deal with this matter? I raised it yesterday. Recently, there have been improvements and we have been told that jobs are being advertised, but they are actually being readvertised because the HSE cannot find anyone. It states this is not because of salary issues, but if child psychiatrists can be hired in the North, I do not know why we cannot find them just across the Border. Is there an initiative or a plan in place or could the Minister discuss this matter? People swap. Within disability services there are quite a number of occupational therapists and physiotherapists who live just across the Border. The overall issue is a major concern for me.

Regarding drugs and prescriptions, one must consider the matter from both sides. As Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick stated, people will travel to the North for their medicines, but they will also travel to the North for outpatient treatment, for example, at Daisy Hill Hospital. As there are shorter waiting times, they travel to the North instead of heading 20 miles south to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda.

If we can have co-operation between the North and the South, I urge the Minister to consider the matter of disability services specifically. There is a major shortage, chiefly of psychiatrists for children with disabilities but also of psychologists, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists, and the waiting lists are long.