Primary care waiting lists
Deputy Quaide described severe waiting times for children’s primary care services across the country. The Taoiseach accepted the waiting lists were unacceptable, said the model and referral system needed review, and noted recruitment efforts and improvements in overseas registration.
When the staggering waiting lists for primary care services for young people were first raised by my party leader, Deputy Holly Cairns, in July 2024, the then Taoiseach, Deputy Simon Harris, suggested the crisis was confined to psychology and the Cork–Kerry area. I have looked into this in depth over the past year and it is clear that the crisis is across disciplines and affecting every health region. The longest waiting time for physiotherapy is in Laois–Offaly, at six and a half years. The longest for occupational therapy is in Louth–Meath, at nine years. The longest for psychology is in Dublin city and west, at an incredible 11 years. The longest for speech and language therapy is in Dublin north-west, at almost six years. These are not outliers because HSE senior management is actually removing outliers from parliamentary question responses. Despite the chronic under-resourcing of primary care services by successive Governments, the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, states the solution is about a single point of access and not staffing thresholds. I support a single point of access but we have to staff services. Thousands of families are being failed. When are we going to establish staffing benchmarks for primary care services based on population size in each health region? When is the Government going to undertake the necessary recruitment?
Comment on this
We have been recruiting. We need to be a little more analytical on this as well. I take the Deputy’s point in that the waiting times are not satisfactory whatsoever. The model needs to be examined. I do not believe it works at all in terms of the referral system and how we are utilising the disciplines. We are recruiting. There have been challenges with recruitment. CORU is improving its performance in respect of those who are qualified who wish to come from the United Kingdom, the EU or elsewhere. A lot of restrictive approaches were being taken to the recruitment of people from overseas, particularly regarding the therapies.
More broadly, and standing back, are we deploying the resources we have adequately, effectively and optimally in respect of these issues? I am doubtful about it. I am doubtful about the model that exists within our health service in respect of therapies. We can keep recruiting but the recruits will not have an appreciable impact.