Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Members in the Independent Group for highlighting this issue and for bringing forward the motion. The current lack of day and respite services for people with intellectual disabilities and their families has become much worse since Covid-19. Many of the families who availed of the limited services are telling us that the service has not fully returned. Disability and day respite services in many areas are extremely limited. This is having a detrimental effect on people with intellectual disabilities and their families, and the effect on the families in particular is absolutely huge.

Parents and professionals are reporting increases in cases of depression, anxiety disorders, psychosis, and severely challenging behaviours, including serious assaults. Many parents and struggling siblings may have serious health problems themselves or in many cases are frail and elderly. Again, there is a real fear of what is going to happen if something happens to them.

There is a private service in Dublin 15, which parents pay for themselves. It is a limited service where parents of children with additional needs can get some time together. One father said he uses the time to go down to his car to have a sleep because it is the only time he can have a decent sleep. Others use the time to shop or to do homework and connect with their other children. Sometimes we can forget that connecting with the other children in the family is very difficult when there is a child with additional needs.

For many with an intellectual disability, their entire social lives are based in and around their services, including their friendships, their activities and their routines. Many of them cannot understand why it is so difficult to access that respite care. Mental health services for people with intellectual disabilities also remain extremely limited. We need progress and development of respite services. I have been involved in co-ordination in this regard with Tusla. We have spent so much time trying to access services only to be told that there are years on the waiting list before a person could get any service, or the family might get one hour per month or of an evening. An overnight respite is like gold dust for many families. That really needs to change. I put it to the Minister of State that we need resources. The families, the parents, the carers, and the people with the disabilities need those extra resources. It is significant to be able to provide those supports and to provide assurances to parents that they would have access to respite care.

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