Micheál Martin (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Deputy O'Callaghan is correct insofar as I identified the provision of a schools-based multidisciplinary therapy service, particularly in special schools, as a core priority and red line issue of mine. We are pursuing it. I have already had meetings with my officials and we will be convening a meeting with all relevant Ministers and agencies in respect of delivering on that. There were attempts at a pilot initiative on that front in the past year which did not yield the outcomes both the HSE and the Department anticipated it would. That was based on a HSE model. That is one initiative we have to take but it will not solve all the issues. The CDNT teams are recruiting, so it is not a funding issue. They have, however, had challenges recruiting therapists to the model established since progressing disabilities services was introduced in 2013, which has not worked. That is why I passionately believe in a schools-based system, especially in special schools to begin with.

We also must deal with the outcome of the 2022 High Court judgement of Ms Justice Phelan in the case of CTM and JA v. the HSE which found the preliminary team assessment approach described in the HSE's standing operating procedures for assessment did not meet the requirements of the Disability Act. We must deal with that through legislation. There has to be engagement if we want to move this on. This has had a huge impact on the assessment of need process and that must be acknowledged. There were issues around recruitment in that but that ruling has had, operationally, a significant impact on the situation. We need to admit that, and when I say "we", I mean we collectively in the House, but politically people may not want to deal with that. I believe we have to deal with that. It is just another step towards changing around the situation here.

We must then significantly increase the number of training places in our universities for therapists, particularly speech and language and occupational therapists, physiotherapists, audiologists and allied healthcare professionals. The last big initiative was taken when I was Minister for Health and Children in 2003 when we created new colleges. At that point, there was only one college in Ireland training speech and language therapists, but we need to double down on that in this era and create significantly more places in our third level colleges in this area. In the interim period, the HSE has been facilitating parents with private sector services and accessing private providers. I want a national health-based system for clinical assessment and then an education system for special schools.

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