Sharon Keogan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and congratulate her on her elevation. I am sure she will do this sector proud. I will begin by acknowledging the sterling work of parents and carers of people with disabilities. It truly is a labour of love and devotion. To contribute to the life of someone with special needs and to help them to achieve at least some of their potential is a thing of beauty. It is also invaluable to the individuals themselves, their communities and the State.

In my own county of Meath, the day care centre, An Castan, in Navan provides services to 24 adults but these services have not been restored since March. This is unacceptable. Many of the parents of these adults are in their late 70s and 80s. If the Minister of State could do something in regard to that particular centre, I would really appreciate it. No suitable alternative day services have been offered and very often these adults are being looked after at home by their elderly parents. This is putting immense pressure and strain on these parents. They need assistance and respite. They are close to burnout and many parents across the country in similar circumstances are feeling the same way. These parents have done our State a great service and made huge sacrifices in order to continue to care for their sons and daughters in a loving family setting. The State cannot abandon these families.

I have read reports in the media regarding the redeployment of senior HSE therapists to work as Covid-19 testers and contact tracers. This is a real concern in light of growing waiting lists and cancelled clinics. Staff involved include speech and language therapists, physiotherapists and occupational therapists who would have been working in primary care and disability services. Some of them have been redeployed for a second time since the pandemic began and fear that their redeployment is long term. They have written to HSE management expressing concern and have said that their professions and disciplines are being undervalued. Therapists have spoken in the media about the detrimental impact on both adults and children of the cessation of, or reduction in, services. They have warned that preventing access to services could adversely affect the development of children with disabilities in particular. As with the adult services, years have been lost.

Approximately 19,000 adults with disabilities receive day service supports and of these 5,000 receive a day service as part of a residential placement. Due to Covid-19 restrictions disability service locations closed in March. On 31 May the framework for the resumption of adult disability services was published and the guidance to support this framework was published on 8 July. The guidance aims to enable safe, person-centred disability day service supports to be provided in line with current public health guidelines. On 28 September the Government announced that €10 million is being made available in 2020 to support the resumption of day services and to enhance home support services for disability service users. This includes €7.5 million which will increase day services by one day per week for more than 14,000 adults. Unfortunately, the 24 adults in Meath to whom I referred are not benefitting from that. Has this money been allocated and if so, where to? What progress has been made on restoring vital services to provide some quality of life to service users and their families? What action has the Minister of State taken to ensure that all HSE-run centres for people with disabilities have been adequately equipped and all staff trained in Covid-19 protection measures? Have independently-run centres been given the support they need to maintain the provision of vital services to people with disabilities?