Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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196. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide further details on the Health Service Executive initiative of providing speech, language and psychology interventions in group workshops to parents of children with special needs rather than providing these supports directly to the children; the savings generated through this initiative in each of the four HSE areas; the number of parents who have been removed from the waiting list for these therapies as a result of their being unable to attend a group workshop in each of the four HSE areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12261/14]

Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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198. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide further detail on the criteria used to assign priority status to children with disabilities in relation to psychology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech and language supports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12265/14]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 196 and 198 together.

Health related therapy supports and interventions for children can be accessed through both the Health Service Executive’s primary care services and its 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.

In terms of disability services, therapy services for children are currently being reconfigured into geographically-based multidisciplinary teams, as part of the HSE’s Progressing Disability Services for Children and Young People (0-18years) Programme. The objective of this 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.

I have asked the HSE to reply directly to the Deputy in respect of the specific operational matters that he has raised.

Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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197. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide a breakdown in tabular form of the number of children aged under 18 years who are on the waiting list for psychology services, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech and language therapy for between one and two years, two and three years, three and four years and over four years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12264/14]

Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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199. To ask the Minister for Health the number of children discharged from the HSE's books each week in relation to psychology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech and language supports; the number of children assigned an inactive status due to inadequate resources; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12266/14]

Colm Keaveney (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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200. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide in tabular form, and by therapy, the total budget to provide the speech and language, physiotherapy, occupational therapy and psychology services in each of the four Health Service Executive areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12267/14]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 197, 199 and 200 together.

The key objective of the Primary Care Strategy is to develop services in the community which will give people direct access to integrated multi-disciplinary teams of general practitioners, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and others. Up to 95% of people's health and social service needs can be properly met within a primary care setting.

As the information requested by the Deputy is not routinely provided to the Department by the HSE, which has responsibility for the provision of Primary Care services, I have asked the HSE to respond directly to the Deputy on these matters.