Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

The implementation of the progressing disability services programme is agreed Government and HSE policy. This policy supports the reconfiguration of children's disability services to provide equitable child- and family-centred services based on need rather than diagnosis. Crucially, this aligns with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The HSE's roadmap for service improvement 2023-26, disability services for children and young people, was approved by the HSE board and launched last October. It is a targeted service improvement programme to achieve a quality, accessible, equitable and timely service for all children with complex needs as a result of disability and for their families. The delays in accessing children’s therapy interventions are acknowledged and work is ongoing by the HSE to maximise the capacity of children’s disability network teams, CDNTs, through recruitment campaigns and other measures, including sourcing assessments through the private sector.

Regarding a review of the progressing disability services model, I advise the Deputy that this matter is provided for in the HSE’s roadmap for service improvement. I engaged with a number of organisations and stakeholders on the shape of the review, including a stakeholder review. The stakeholders involved currently include the HSE, the NDA and Fórsa as well as the Department. I am informed by the HSE that work is ongoing to finalise the scoping of the relevant elements of the review of the CDNT model of service, with the most recent engagement taking place on Monday, 21 October. Detailed feedback from this meeting between the HSE and Fórsa is awaited from the HSE. We are taking initial steps and reaching out to key stakeholders to get the framework for how this review will be implemented. It will be valuable.

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