Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. This is a very specialised service. It is important to note that the orthoptist service ceased in July 2024 due to maternity leave. In fairness to the HSE in the area, after the senior orthoptist resigned in October 2023, even without the derogation, agency staff were used to continue until July 2024. Unfortunately, while every effort is being made to secure more agency staff to continue this specialised service, this has been unsuccessful to date, which is the worrying aspect of this. I believe that if the derogation were to be sought and passed, it would be a full-time position for somebody who might be interested in taking it on.

I will take this away and have my officials engage with the HSE in the area to see, first, whether this derogation can be sought and passed and, second, whether the post can be offered in a full-time capacity, which may encourage somebody to take it up.

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