Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)

The case I wish to raise concerns a young man from Tallaght. He was assaulted in Dublin's Temple Bar. Such an assault is probably a parent's greatest nightmare. The young man went into town for a drink and was assaulted and left for dead. If a tourist had not spotted him and put him into the recovery position, the young man would have died. He was in a coma for a considerable period. While he was in the coma his parents were unaware of where he was, which added to their worry. They eventually found him.

The family were told there would be a care plan for the young man, which would start with hospitalisation. When he came out of the coma he was violent, which I am told is quite common in such cases. He is still being treated in St. James's Hospital. The care plan was to start with hospitalisation and proceed to rehabilitation, speech therapy and going home, after which it was hoped he would return to work. Both of the young man's parents work and there are younger children in the family. During the time the young man was in a coma, the parents took time off work. It amounted to a considerable period. The young man was assaulted on 9 January and it is now 15 February.

The difficulty is that the next step in the young man's recovery is rehabilitation but the parents have been told there is an eight to ten week waiting list for rehabilitation. There is pressure from the hospital authorities on the parents to take the young man home. However, they believe they are unable to look after him. Although the nightmare is over to some extent, the parents are at their wits' end. They are under pressure to take the young man home and, indeed, they want to do so. In fact, they took him home last weekend for a couple of hours. He watched the match but when asked after the match what teams were playing he could not remember. He is clearly in need of more help. There is also difficulty getting the young man up and down the stairs in the family home to use the toilet and so forth.

If the young man remains in hospital, he will regress. He has progressed in leaps and bounds but the difficulty is with the rehabilitation process. There is nowhere for him to go for the next step of his recovery. I have written to the Minister for Health and Children, the health executive, the hospital and the rehabilitation hospital. I have received responses outlining all types of difficulties. However, the parents are seeking help. I told them I would raise the question in the House. The parents believe the system is failing them because the next step in treatment is not available for their child.

I hope the Minister will have good news for this family. I have described this situation as a nightmare but it is one that could happen to any family. The reply I received from the hospital stated that rehabilitation should be the next step. It also outlines the hospital's concern that the young man will regress if he is left in the acute hospital environment. It is clearly a difficult case and is something that could affect any family.

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