Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue for discussion and, as he rightly said, I am taking this on behalf of the Minister of State with responsibility for disabilities, Deputy Rabbitte.

The Deputy will be aware that throughout the pandemic, staff and resources associated with closed or curtailed services were redeployed, where possible, to support residential provision and to provide for targeted in-home, community and tele-online supports for service users and families based on prioritised needs. For those with a disability and their families, the impact of the pandemic on those services presented challenges that are still felt today.

The HSE is very much aware of the importance of respite service provision for the families of both children and adults with disabilities and the impact the absence of respite service provision can have on other services being delivered.

Regarding the specific issue of respite provision in CHO 6, the HSE is aware of the recent escalations by services users and their families regarding access to St. John of God respite houses at Wyattville and Ravenswell. Occasionally, respite services must be temporarily curtailed to accommodate urgent emergency residential situations. Unfortunately, this is currently the case with the respite service in Wyattville, which has been impacted since the week commencing 21 February 2022. To manage the emergency, the only available and appropriate option was to use Wyattville and its staff team until an alternative location and an additional staff team are recruited. As the Deputy knows, that can take some time.

The HSE advises that families were contacted by St. John of God Services in early February to outline the situation, and that Community Healthcare East further contacted families on 24 February, apologising unreservedly for the additional stress the situation had caused. St. John of God Services have confirmed to the HSE that there are 69 individuals affected by the repurposing of Wyattville and there are nine individuals on the waiting list. The HSE advises that it is committed as far as possible to support Wyattville respite service users with supported holidays while Wyattville remains inaccessible, although I take on board the point made by the Deputy that somebody was offered a holiday in Wexford, which was 130 km away, which can be very difficult for the family. I will bring that to the attention of the Minister of State.

I can confirm that the HSE has requested information from St. John of God Services regarding the list of service users and their preferences for respite breaks to identify and prioritise individuals to offer interim respite supports. HSE Community Healthcare East is committed to considering these priorities as a matter of urgency, within the available funding. Once this information is received, the HSE and St. John of God Services will liaise with the alternative service provider to ensure there is limited reduction to the individuals' scheduled respite provision over the next six months. Communication will issue to all individuals outlining the details of the proposed supported holidays, including any transition plans that are required.

Regarding reduced access to respite in Ravenswell, the HSE advises that this is specifically related to ongoing recruitment challenges in the sector. St. John of God Services have assured the HSE that they are actively campaigning for additional staffing.

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