Written answers

Tuesday, 27 July 2021

Department of Health

Disability Services

Photo of Pauline TullyPauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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1997. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 1014 and 1015 of 31 March 2021, the number of children’s disability network teams that have currently been established; and if the remaining 60 teams will be established by the end of quarter 2 of 2021. [36081/21]

Photo of Anne RabbitteAnne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Photo of Pauline TullyPauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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1998. To ask the Minister for Health the estimated number of additional therapy posts that are needed to fully resource children’s disability network teams to an adequate level that will ensure timely access to both an assessment of need report and the subsequent access to the interventions identified in the assessments of need report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36082/21]

Photo of Anne RabbitteAnne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Photo of Pauline TullyPauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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1999. To ask the Minister for Health the progress of the personalised budgets demonstration pilot projects; the projected timeline for the completion of the demonstration projects; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36083/21]

Photo of Anne RabbitteAnne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The report of the Task Force on Personalised Budgets was launched by Minister McGrath in July 2018. The report set out how personalised budgets could work as a funding mechanism for people with a disability.

Personalised budgets can help to provide people with disabilities with greater choice and control over the services and supports they receive.

The Task Force reviewed national and international research and consulted with service users and their families. They recommended that the Department of Health, with the HSE, should establish a pilot project to test the delivery of personalised budgets - the aim being to identify the best approach to roll-out personalised budgets following this pilot phase.

Funding can be spent on specific personal supports funded by the HSE such as employing your own support worker or having support staff at a time you choose. These supports will be agreed and identified in a personal support plan for each participant. The funding is allocated by the HSE.

Funding cannot be spent on informal care from a partner or close relative or to pay for supports that would normally be provided by another Government Department or Statutory Agency, e.g. housing.

The Personalised Budget pilot is open to adults with a disability that are currently in receipt of HSE funded services. This included appropriate school leavers in 2019 and 2020.

It is hoped that the pilot will have up to 180 participants over two phases who access day services, residential services, respite services, rehabilitative training and personal assistance.

Some other variables that the HSE are also considering in relation to the sample of participants include types of disability, complexity of need, CHO and type of funding models.

In order to take part in the pilot, participants submitted an expression of interest. Expressions of interest for phase 2 closed in September 2020 and the HSE received 136 applications. Due to COVID-19 there was a pause in processing applications, so applications are still being processed.

There are currently 55 participants in the various stages of the pilot. This means that the pilot is running behind schedule. This is due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the closure of services, and then the knock-on effect that this has had in making it difficult to recruit staff for the HSE team. The current restrictions are negatively impacting with the HSE’s ability to meet with individuals and progress.

The Personalised Budget Office continues to embed the option of Personalised Budgets in each CHO through regular linking with Disability Managers and Day Opportunity Co-ordinators, to offer advice and problem solving for participants.

In November 2020, I approved an extension to the pilot project until June 2022. This will facilitate applicant participation of 12 months minimum and allow time for a robust evaluation to be completed thereafter.

Photo of Pauline TullyPauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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2000. To ask the Minister for Health the estimated additional cost of extending personalised budgets to all persons with a disability; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36084/21]

Photo of Anne RabbitteAnne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The report of the Task Force on Personalised Budgets was launched by Minister McGrath in July 2018. The report set out how personalised budgets could work as a funding mechanism for people with a disability.

The Task Force reviewed national and international research and consulted with service users and their families. They recommended that the Department of Health, with the HSE, should establish a pilot project to test the delivery of personalised budgets - the aim being to identify the best approach to roll-out personalised budgets following this pilot phase.

The Personalised Budget pilot is open to adults with a disability that are currently in receipt of HSE funded services. This included appropriate school leavers in 2019 and 2020.

It is hoped that the pilot will have up to 180 participants over two phases who access day services, residential services, respite services, rehabilitative training and personal assistance.

There are currently 55 participants in the various stages of the pilot. This means that the pilot is running behind schedule. This is due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in the closure of services, and then the knock-on effect that this has had in making it difficult to recruit staff for the HSE team. The current restrictions are negatively impacting with the HSE’s ability to meet with individuals and progress.

In November 2020, I approved an extension to the pilot project until June 2022. This will facilitate applicant participation of 12 months minimum and allow time for a robust evaluation to be completed thereafter. Following this evaluation, a decision will be made on rolling out Personalised Budgets to all persons with a disability.

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