Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations. I presume the two programmes are similar. I talk to parents all of the time. They contact me, often distressed, because their child is hurting himself or herself, or lashing out at other members of the family. Maybe they are tearing or eating their clothes. They are crying out for help, and they do not know how to help their child or how to help the rest of the family. The Children's Disability Network Teams, CDNT, are established, but because they are understaffed people are being told that their child is on a waiting list and will be seen in 2024 or 2025 for speech and language therapy, or occupational therapy and so forth. These are proven programmes that work. Has the HSE shown any interest in them, and in replicating them? Do they work as part of, or in conjunction with, CDNTs? How are the programmes funded? They have charitable status, so are they funded in part by the HSE, or is it purely from their own fund raising? It sounds to me that it is just common sense. Why is this not being replicated throughout the country given their proven track record of working with families and with the evidence to back it up? There are so many families out there crying out for help, How much interaction has there been with the HSE? Is it thinking of rolling this out? Mr. Buttery said it is now part of Sláintecare. I am trying to figure out if this is in conjunction with CDNTs. Parents tell me that the only kind of support they get through the CDNT is online parenting programmes, but they say they are very general. They are not specific to their child. Obviously, every child is different. Some of the information is helpful and parents will do any course that will help their child. However, many times they are offered a course they have already done, and if they do not do it they are told their child will be taken off the list. There is this kind of attitude. I am asking how this fits in with the CDNT and if it is going to be something that is replicated.