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THOUSANDS OF CHILDREN with disabilities are being left waiting for months on end for assessments – despite the Disability Act stating that an assessment must be carried out within three months from the date of application.
This week, TheJournal.ie highlight three cases where children’s assessments are being scheduled more than two years after being referred.
The HSE has now confirmed that at end of 2016 there were a total of 3,960 applications overdue for completion.
Figures released to this website show that there have been 35,728 applications received since 2008 and only 22,178 had assessment reports completed in that time – a difference of 13,550.
For a larger image of the above table, click here.
In a statement the HSE said it “recognises that early intervention services and services for school-aged children with disabilities need to be improved and organised more effectively and this process is well under way”.
Assessments being carried out within a three-month timeframe is a legal requirement that is set out in legislation. The Disability Act 2005, section 9(5) states:
Where an application under or a request is made, the Executive shall cause an assessment of the applicant to be commenced within 3 months of the date of the receipt of the application or request and to be completed without undue delay.
The HSE said it’s “currently engaged in a reconfiguration of existing therapy resources to geographic based teams for children” and that the objective of the new model of assessment and intervention “is to provide one clear referral pathway for all children (0-18s), irrespective of their disability, where they live or the school they attend”.
“It is expected that this re-configuration of services will have a significant impact on the HSE’s ability to meet the needs of children and young people in a more efficient, effective and equitable manner. In particular, it will facilitate their ability to comply with the statutory time-frames set out in the Disability Act 2005 and the accompanying regulations.”
‘Never seem to get fixed’
One mother who was not content with leaving her son languishing on a HSE waiting list took things into her own hands.
Karen Leigh founded Sensational Kids, which offers therapies and developmental help at a low cost. It opened its doors in Kildare town in 2009 and now also has a centre in Clonakilty, Cork.
It fills the gap between public and private services for children with varying needs. Its most popular services are speech and language therapy – for which there are big waiting lists across Ireland – and occupational therapy. Leigh said:
It is not good to leave children on a waiting list for years. It is also adding to their problems in terms of self esteem and confidence. That is really very detrimental to their development, and you can be getting into mental health difficulties there. Hopefully we provide a solution to that problem.
She also added that when she started the charity, she didn’t realise how big the need was.
All those waiting lists and they never seem to be fixed. It never gets any better. We provide them with an option that is accessible and affordable.
Initially, Sensational Kids was for children with special needs, but now it is for children – and teens – of all abilities.
Sensational Kids is holding a fairy and elf festival in Rathwood September 9 and 10 and is aiming to raise €30,000 for children with special needs.
Pre-booking is essential and can be done here.
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This process is narrowly focused on the assessment that defines the individuals requirement for services, it doesn’t mean that the ones who got through have even received any services.
@Sarah Kelleher: check out AIM in early childhood no diagnosis required and supports given not funded fantastic but a start
@Sarah Kelleher: exactly, after assessment , services become the problem. Would love to see a prime time analysis on this
Assessment and early interventions are essential , quality of life and financial savings are enormous. Earlier the better and most beneficial.
It was the most shambolic, stressful process I have ever had to go through and took phone calls, letters to Simon Harris and the involvement of an MEP before my son finally received his assessment 8 months past his deadline. Had I sat and just took it, he would probably still be waiting.
The HSEs “reconfiguration of services” was meant to happen in March 2015 and we’re still waiting without it seeming to be a single step closer. Even when it happens it’s a shuffling of existing resources so how it’s meant to improve the current mess is a mystery. Specialist services (such as those for people with ASD) will be replaced by local offices which may have little to no experience with said diagnoses. If the local office doesn’t have the required expertise then a specialist team will be involved, wonder how long that’ll take???
@Graham: Under the reconfiguration students will access services based where they live as opposed to where they go to school meaning, as a ASD special class teacher, I’ll have to deal with 32+ psychologists, OTs, SLTs etc who get replaced regularly, have no idea how our classes run, may have no experience working with students with ASD and don’t know our students. This is instead of the 3-6 v experienced, though vastly overworked and under-resourced, staff we deal with now. How is this an improvement??? Special schools are exempt from this provision but not special classes. I sat down with the people running this .
@Graham: and they couldn’t give a single valid reason why special classes shouldn’t be exempt as well but won’t look at changing it. All parents I’ve spoken to are of the same mind as myself
Why are we surprised by this . Hse is a shambles ,paying themselves over and above what they deserve. Abolish as soon as possible . This is abuse at its best .
The HSE will never be able to adequately or efficiently run this service because leave is not covered. There is absolutely no continuity of care because leave, i.e. maternity, is not covered. The charity providers who are amalgamating with the HSE under the new geographical based teams will continue to cover the absence of employees on leave. The HSE need to put real commitment into this new structure. They need to hire adequate numbers to incorporate covering leave like most organisations offering a service. It is untenable for the government to continue to pump money into this farce. Even more children will be failed as they are transferred from these charity funded services into HSE geographically based teams.
I do notice that the number of applications for assessment have risen sharply. Some of this may be as a result of better awareness of developmental or learning difficulties . More of it will be because parents, who in the past just struggled on without state help.
But there are more who fall in to another category- most schools have seen cuts to funding and they are allocated more resources based on the number of kids diagnosed/assessed as having learning difficulties. It is not unknown for schools to encourage parents to send kids for assessment (who may simply be unruly), in the hope of securing additional funding for resource teachers and assistants.
Sending these kids for assessment will only overtax the system, and make it difficult for kids really in need of help, to get that help
@Alan Lawlor: if a teacher suspects that there is something wrong or if the child has issues then it is their responsibility to inform the parents and advice on getting an assessment. . If there’s a doubt then the teacher has to say something . To suggest that its only for extra resources for the school is ridiculous.
So – everyone was busy worrying about the Nurses and Docs while forgetting that allied health grads (SLT – Occupational Therapy – Physio) are also leaving the country since they can’t get jobs/have lower pay/ are dealing with stressful work conditions too!
In Mauritius, a child doesn’t even queue. They go straight in to a doctor. It should be this way for kids everywhere and for almost everything.
I was there when something happened and was told so.
For the record:
http://www.thejournal.ie/hse-annual-report-2016-3436548-Jun2017/
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