Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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116. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans to provide work placements for students studying physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy as many in these professions have been redeployed to Covid-19 testing; if these placements will be delayed; if the qualification date for these students will be delayed; the supports that will be put in place for these students if their placement and qualification date are delayed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42418/20]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Provision of clinical placements for healthcare students is a matter for the Department of Health and the HSE, and my Department is not in a position to provide information on whether such placements may be delayed.

Since the onset of the Covid-19 outbreak, significant work has been undertaken by a stakeholder group chaired by the Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) and including the representative bodies of education providers to address issues relating to the maintenance of the quality and standards of teaching and learning, assessment and qualifications. This group has focused on the implementation of alternative arrangements, where appropriate and necessary, to meet both these standards and, where applicable, the educational accreditation criteria established by Professional Recognition Bodies (PRBs).

In the case of physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy the awards standards established by QQI reflect the accreditation criteria that have been set out by CORU, Ireland's multi-profession Health and Social Care Regulator and consequently the relevant PRB for these professions. Members of the stakeholder group as well as QQI and CORU engaged regularly to ensure that necessary arrangements were put in place to maintain standards of education and training in this area so that students can progress e.g. from third year into fourth year or, where relevant, graduate with the relevant professional competencies that have been set out by CORU and which are reflected in QQI’s award standards.