Martin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I commend Deputy Tully on bringing this motion forward. It is with a heavy heart that I have taken the opportunity to address the House on the motion. I will focus specifically on CDNTs and multidisciplinary teams, specifically in the area of autism and the eating disorder called avoidant restrictive food intake disorder, ARFID. This relates to a young boy called Riain in my town of Cashel, County Tipperary. People with autism spectrum conditions are much more likely to develop ARFID. As such, his anxiety towards food is having huge consequences on his health. He has lost weight to such an extent that his health is in severe decline, yet his family are unable to receive the treatment he needs. He ended up in South Tipperary General Hospital, which has been a godsend to the family. He was released with a feeding tube and was on compact protein administered by a food pump.

He has seen community dieticians over the years and attended weight checks, and various ways have been tried to encourage him to eat. Unfortunately, none has had any luck. In 2019, CAMHS diagnosed him as having ARFID. In early 2020, he became gravely ill and the feeding tube was inserted again. He was seen by CAMHS, which again confirmed that it was ARFID. It could not offer a service as it had no psychiatrist trained in the area of eating disorders yet it wanted to administer a drug for anxiety.

The family then turned to Éist Linn in Cork, which despite initially agreeing to take him on, subsequently refused him on the basis that it would be able to treat anorexia nervosa but because the linked condition of ASD is neither classed as a mental illness or a psychological disorder, ARFID must be managed differently and, therefore, does not fall under the remit of CAMHS. It also refused him on the basis that he is outside of its catchment area, which is incorrect. Instead, it threw the ball back into the court of the CDNT teams, which have already been shown to be unable to deal with it. Indeed, a recent letter to the local CDNT team in September from the medical social worker has gone unanswered. It will not take the lead. It is a vicious circle. CAMHS says the CDNT should deal with the case yet the CDNT does not have the experience to deal with ARFID. The boy's parents do not know where to go.

I have written to the Department of Health on this matter with little assistance forthcoming and that is why I am addressing the Minister regarding this matter today. The boy's parents are at their wits' end. If meaningful action to treat ARFID in this young boy is not taken soon, the family will have no choice but to go down a legal avenue. I appeal to the Minster here today to take this issue on board immediately, make contact with the family, whose name and address I have, and assist them in navigating the system to secure life-saving intervention. Every family has a different experience of services for their children with special or exceptional needs. I raised this case today as more than just an example but as an emergency case that needs to be dealt with.

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