Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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Question 140: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will confirm that a disability database for children is maintained by the Health Service Executive in order to plan for future services and that children wishing to be entered on this database are required to undergo an assessment; if she will further confirm that the HSE no longer provides staff to make that assessment and that consequently its ability to plan for the future is jeopardised; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41739/08]

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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There are currently two national service-planning databases for people with disabilities, the National Intellectual Disability Database (NIDD), established in 1995, and the National Physical and Sensory Disability Database, established in 2002. These databases inform decision making in relation to the planning of specialised health and personal social services for people with intellectual, physical or sensory disabilities. Information for the databases is collected by the HSE and non-statutory service providers. The databases are managed nationally by the Health Research Board on behalf of the Department of Health and Children.

The NIDD provides a needs assessment of people with an intellectual disability. The categories of need are as follows: unmet need; service change required; persons with an intellectual disability who are accommodated in psychiatric hospitals and multidisciplinary support services required.

Information for the NPSDD is collected by means of interviews with individuals who meet the registration criteria. The primary focus of the NPSDD is to facilitate service planning and provision; it also aims to record the details of people availing of, or requiring, a specialised health and personal service. As not every individual in Ireland who has a physical or sensory disability is availing of or requiring a specialised health or personal social service, the NPSDD cannot provide any epidemiological statement on the number of people with a particular type of disability. Participation in the NPSDD is voluntary; the database may not therefore cover a proportion of people living in Ireland who have a physical or sensory disability.

In addition, in keeping with its statutory requirements under section 13(1) of the Disability Act 2005, the HSE is engaged in a process of collating and maintaining records collected under the Assessment of Need process for children aged under 5.

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 141: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on changing the closing date for applications in respect of funding special needs assistants for pre-schools to allow the Health Service Executive to process applications in time for children to start pre-school in September of each year; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41788/08]

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 142: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on altering the date for the issue of special needs assistance to permit parents and guardians of children allocated special needs assistant hours to appeal a decision made regarding the amount of hours allocated; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41789/08]

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 143: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the difficulties experienced by a representative group (details supplied) when it applied for funding from the Health Service Executive in respect of a special needs assistant to allow its children to commence pre-school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41790/08]

John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 141 to 143, inclusive, together.

The Deputy's questions relate to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the Parliamentary Affairs Division of the Executive to arrange to have these matters investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.