Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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14. To ask the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the long delays in assessment and access in respect of speech and language therapy in Dublin 15; the measures he will take to resolve same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6797/14]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Health related supports and interventions for children can be accessed through HSE Primary Care and Disability Services. The National Service Plan 2013 provided for additional funding of €20m to strengthen primary care services. This comprises over €18.5m for the recruitment of over 260 primary care team posts and over €1.4m to support Community Intervention Team development. Of the additional posts allocated, 52 whole-time equivalent Speech and Language Therapy posts were approved. The recruitment process is ongoing in relation to these posts, with the majority of the posts filled or offered, subject to start dates being agreed.

Five Speech and Language Therapy posts have been assigned to Dublin 15 which will bring the total number for this area to eleven. I have been informed that all of these new therapists are in place as of this week. Significant reductions in waiting times for speech and language therapy services have already been achieved and further improvements should be seen over the coming weeks.

In terms of disability services, therapy services for children are being reconfigured into geographically-based multidisciplinary teams, as part of the Progressing Disability Services for Children and Young People Programme. The objective of the Programme is to achieve a national, unified approach to delivering disability health services so that there is a clear pathway to services for all children, regardless of where they live, what school they go to or the nature of their disability. The National Service Plan 2014 provides for targeted investment of €4m for the roll out of this Programme which equates to 80 additional therapy posts, including Speech and Language Therapy posts, with the northside of Dublin identified as one of the priority areas for 2014.