Mr. Bernard O'Regan:

Again, my colleagues might comment on some aspects. In a previous role, I worked with an organisation that was located in a rural county and that provided services to children and adults with disabilities, including those with autism. The model we operated comprised a team of clinicians who provided therapy and conducted assessments. That team predated the CDNTs but, in effect, was one.

We also had a range of other supports to work in conjunction with the team. These included autism resource workers, personal assistants, home support and all these kinds of supports. They were working in conjunction with the team so that direct supports were provided to a child or family where they were. It helped to enable implementation of the recommendations a therapist might make. In many respects, apart from providing direct support to the child, some of those staff also played a key worker role and were able to act as a bridge between different components of the service and to support families in navigating the services. As we develop the services, and we want to develop the clinical services, we must be mindful that other supports and services that people need must also be developed.

As regards rural communities, these services must be agile enough. There are examples of where agile services have been developed in rural areas that have been responsive. We do not need to reinvent the wheel. Sometimes this is about investing but it involves parallel investment and growing these kinds of services together. My colleagues may wish to contribute on other aspects.