Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

To reiterate, I am pleased to confirm that the return of public health nurses to their core duties has now enabled the resumption of child development checks across the country. Last year, for example, 84% of children had the check before they reached 12 months, whereas in the previous year, in the height of Covid, the rate was sitting at 59.8%. There has been a huge increase but we want to get it to 100%. We want to make sure every child receives these vital checks, as the Deputy suggested. The role of the public health nurse cannot be underestimated, whether it pertains to very young babies and children or older individuals.

Specifically on the child development projects at Old County Road primary care centre, which I know the Deputy addressed in her question, the HSE has advised that there has been a delay in completing checks due to staffing shortages. However, it has also advised that a plan has now been put in place by the service in Crumlin to address the backlog. This plan commenced last week and children have already been invited to attend developmental appointments. The HSE has advised that it is exploring every avenue to fill outstanding staff vacancies, and recruitment is ongoing. I hope all those invited will take up positions and that the backlog can be addressed as soon as possible.

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