410. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to urgently review and intervene to secure occupational therapy (OT) services in the south Louth Bettystown catchment, where there are presently over 600 children awaiting an OT assessment and with no paediatric occupational therapist staff presently employed in this network; if he will provide a mitigation plan to ensure that these ever-increasing numbers are catered for in neighbouring networks where services are available, or alternately, provide the services by contracting the private sector to cater for this unacceptable number of children awaiting treatment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38952/24]

As this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.