The Aontú leader and Meath West TD Peadar Tóibín has secured figures from the HSE which show that all four Children’s Disability Network Teams (CDNTs) in Co Meath are understaffed.
The figures show that the government has funded 21.1 whole time equivalent positions in the Kells team, but only 18.2 positions have been filled. We can see that 33.9 positions have been funded for Dunsaughlin/ East Meath, but only 23.6 have been filled. In Navan / Slane out of 29.7 funded positions only 26.7 have been filled. In Trim where there should be 26.8 positions we only have 20.3 in reality on the ground.
Speaking in the Dáil today to Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Deputy Tóibín said:
“In my county of Meath none of the Children’s Disability Network Teams are fully staffed. There are, according to fresh statistics released to me today, 20 vacant posts across the Disability teams in Kells, Dunshaughlin, Navan, Slane and Trim. Twenty unfilled posts”
“Separate data released to Aontú shows that you’ve actually also reduced the number of college places for Speech and Language Therapists from 370 in the academic year before the pandemic to 355 last year. So on one hand you are reducing the number of therapists qualifying each year, and on the other hand you’re scratching your head wondering why you can’t fill the vacant therapist posts”.
“What do you say, Taoiseach, the parents of children with disabilities in my constituency who have been waiting 14 months on waiting lists? To the children who are being bounced between CAMHS, CDNT and other services without ever ending up on a waiting list?”
The Taoiseach responded by saying that the vacancy rate among CDNTs has come down nationally and that the government will increase college places for therapists.
