Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Moran for raising this issue. I am taking this debate on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, who is unavoidably absent as she is attending a conference today.

The named individual is a service user of St. John of God Services, Drumcar, County Louth, and it is from this organisation that she has received all her services to date. I am informed that she lives with her parents and attends day services five days a week. Drumcar Services is a section-38-funded organisation that provides services for clients with severe and profound intellectual disabilities. Louth disability services are aware of the current issues pertaining to this family due to the advancing age of the parents, who are finding caring for their daughter very challenging. Her name remains on Louth disability services' waiting list for funding, which is monitored vigilantly.

The vision for the HSE's disability services programme is to contribute to the realisation of a society in which people with disabilities are supported as far as possible in participating to their full potential in economic and social life and have access to a range of high-quality personal social supports and services to enhance their quality of life. The HSE national service plan for 2014 and the 2014 operational plan for the social care division outline the quantum of specialist disability services, the key reform initiatives and the additional investment in 2014. The HSE will spend €1.4 billion and employ a staff level of approximately 15,000 whole-time equivalents in 2014 to provide specified levels of service. An additional investment of €14 million in 2014 also has been made to address deficits in disability services, implement a reform programme to transform services to a community-based model of person-centred supports, and focus on the implementation of the Health Information and Quality Authority standards for residential services for people with a disability. These developments and reform proposals will be carried out in an environment of effective communications and engagement with all those involved in services, including people with a disability, through the HSE's National Consultative Forum. The emerging residential need in the absence of residential development funding over the past number of years is a major challenge for all services providing support to clients with a disability. The issue of funding for residential services will be considered in the context of the Estimates and service planning process for 2015, which will occur in October and November.

In the meantime, I am told that a plan is in place to support this person in attending her day placement at St. Mary's, Drumcar, and ongoing regular respite has been arranged for her.