Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

It is not even that. That waiting time is just to get an appointment to see someone. There may be other avenues down which he could go. I am giving an example. That man was told by his doctor that he could be waiting for between five and six years.

There are treatments that jump out in respect of the waiting lists, including dental care and oral hygiene, particularly for children. Psychological services have been mentioned. There are delays for access to speech and language therapy and other additional supports. There are problems within the system. We are talking about existing services but there are also problems in respect of services that people cannot access in this State. I am aware of a case of a child who went into hospital in Tallaght at the age of 17. The child had enormous problems. The child has neurodevelopmental disorder, mental illness and a visual impairment. The setting is unsuitable for the child. The option for the child, who is now 21, is probably to travel abroad. I am looking at the figures in respect of children and adults for whom there are no facilities in Ireland. The total number of people travelling abroad to North of Ireland or Britain for treatment where no treatment is available in Ireland is 33. Some €25 million was spent on that. Between 2014 and 2023, €4.355 million was spent on 12 children and 17 adults. I am trying to focus on that. An huge amount is being spent on services that are not available to people within the State. Is there a plan for the children, in particular? There is an added problem of parents trying to visit and so on if their children are outside the State.

There are also difficulties in getting reimbursement for patients who have travelled abroad for treatment because they were waiting years to get treatment in Ireland. Perhaps the Minister will touch on that issue. All these issues are related to the Estimates. I have spoken in broad strokes about the real challenges that are facing real people within the system.