Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

One of the most prevailing issues regarding the provision of disability services is the extraordinarily long waiting lists for such services. In my constituency of Dublin North-West, a high number of children and young people with autism and other special needs and disabilities are on lengthy waiting lists for assessment and support services.

I recently had a constituent in my clinic who was waiting to get a child assessed for disability. This person was told that the child will have to wait for another three years for assessment. Figures issued in August of this year also show that children are waiting for primary care psychology. CHO 9, which also includes my constituency of Dublin North-West, had a maximum wait of more than four years for such services. It is critical that children get the supports they need at an early age as this is the time that such supports will make the biggest difference for the child as he or she gets older

These long delays in assessment are not acceptable. They are frustrating for parents trying to access services. Parents are despairing and feel that they and their children are being neglected. Their despair is not helped by the fact that a huge number of staff positions remain unfilled. Many families also complain of a lack of clarity with regard to plans and timeframes for progressing disability services for children and the processes to access such services are often over-complex. Parents of children with disabilities must become advocates to secure the supports they need for their children in a system that is, at best, difficult to navigate. Many of these children have complex needs that require specialised and intensive supports. They are struggling to access them now.

I am a member of the Joint Committee on Disability Matters, which today launched a report on the participation of people with disabilities in political, cultural, community and public life. Ireland signed up to the United Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and it is time we implemented it. That requires real investment and a will to follow through on commitments. I hope the Minister of State will be able to see the shortfalls in the services that have been identified in this report. All the different advocates were there and I think it has been a very good exercise,

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