Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)
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Question 101: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on the information from the chief executive officer of the Health Service Executive that social workers are being withdrawn from primary care teams in order for the organisation to comply with child care regulations; if this is contrary to her policy to develop primary care and also to concentrate on early intervention and preventative action; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25897/10]

Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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The HSE has a statutory obligation under the Child Care Act, 1991 to promote the welfare of children who are not receiving adequate care and attention. The HSE has been provided with additional resources of over €14M in the current year to strengthen child welfare and protection services in line with the recommendations of the Ryan Commission. This includes funding for the recruitment of 200 additional social workers dedicated to this service.

The HSE acknowledges the important role of Social Workers in Primary Care Teams and the need to orient service delivery towards early intervention and whole family involvement. I understand that each HSE Area was requested to review the workload of Social Workers, in order to assist in meeting the legislation requirements in respect of Child Protection services. This involves reviewing case load management to ensure that the statutory requirements are met. The decision does not, in most cases, involve Social Workers being redeployed or removed from Primary Care Teams, but facilitates the prioritisation of child protection.