Sorca Clarke (Longford-Westmeath, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State for taking the time to speak about this serious issue. "What's seldom is wonderful." That is how one parent described the level of services his child with Down's syndrome has received. The tone in which he said it would break a stone heart.

In my constituency of Longford-Westmeath the Springfield Centre in Mullingar plays a critical role in the provision of these services. It is vital that the centre reopens for face-to-face therapy sessions. The families concerned have waited patiently for their turn for services to reopen since the pandemic arrived. From Friday, the reality is that they can bring their children to the cinema across the road from where they want to bring them and need to bring them, which is to the centre to get those vital services.

A little boy born in April with Down's syndrome has had one physiotherapy session. He has had no more, nothing else and no contact. Another child has had two sessions. More were promised but none were delivered. This feedback is common. It is not the exception to the rule; it is the rule. Parents are doing everything they can but they desperately need help now, and that help is difficult to get. They are no longer begging and pleading for services to reopen; they are shouting and roaring. That is the urgent nature of the need for their children to receive these services. Let us be honest. This is a damning indictment.

Covid-19 is not an excuse. The fact is that the level of these services pre-Covid was never fit for purpose. Any intention to return to that level of service provision will miss the needs of these children by a country mile. The parents want the services to reopen urgently and their children need the services to reopen urgently.

Schools can be open. In schools it is deemed safe for adults and children to be together for extended periods of time. Cinemas are open. We can now go shopping for our Christmas gifts. However, these parents still cannot have the essential services that their children need. It simply does not make sense.

What is more concerning is that it does not stop there. I received a call earlier this week regarding adults with Down's syndrome. They are part of a wider group of people requiring extra needs who are close to the same centre geographically. Every morning they used to be picked up by a bus. They learned new skills for independent living and in how to take care of themselves. Their interaction was social but also psychologically beneficial. The routine and structure for participants and the respite they afforded the carers were invaluable. However, the HSE has moved the Covid-19 testing site to where they were situated. They now have no home. They are operating out of two places in industrial estates on either side of the town. They have no access to materials, resources or their peers on a regular basis. The bus that picked them up has also stopped. Gone is the routine and the structure. It is sad and concerning that their families are reporting that the skills they learned while they were there are gone.

Everyone understands that the pandemic and Covid-19 take precedence. No one is disputing or arguing that fact. However, what could be, and is being, disputed is that the demands on these people have been disproportionate. Some members of society have sacrificed so much more and have lost access to so much more. These children and babies fall into that category. We are still asking the most vulnerable group in our society to make sacrifices.

It does not have to be like this. We are not in the early stages of Covid. We are almost a year into Covid. It should not be a choice between testing centres, provision of services, provision of therapies or support services for adults. Packaging things in that way is unconscionable.

The reality is that what has led us here is poor planning and decision-making. When will the Springfield Centre reopen to provide these vital therapies for children? Why were more suitable premises not found for the adult group?

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