Anger over speech and language assessment spills onto Facebook

ANGER over the waiting list times for speech and language assessment and therapy in Clare have spilled on to social networking website Facebook.
Local charity Clare Crusaders and national group Special Needs Parents picked up on comments by Clare Fine Gael Deputy Joe Carey on the “scandalous waiting times” for vital speech and language assessment and treatment and have begun to correspond with others disgusted at the situation through Deputy Carey’s Facebook page.
Earlier this week, Deputy Carey said speech and language therapy services in County Clare are at breaking point. He claimed many constituents had issues in getting appointments in recent months for both initial assessment and follow-up treatment and sought clarification from the HSE on how long clients are waiting for assessment and treatment in Clare.
“In some cases, it has taken up to a year to get an appointment for speech and language assessment. Once that assessment was done, some clients were given an appointment for speech and language therapy, only to take place once a month,” Deputy Carey said.
The HSE informed Deputy Carey that for 78% of clients, it will take up to four months for initial assessment to take place.
“Only 34% of those will get a follow-up appointment within another four months. So it is more than likely the assessment and first appointment will take almost a year for the majority patients. This is a crazy situation and for any young child who needs speech and language therapy, a full year is a hell of a long time to be waiting for treatment,” he commented.
“It is only for the work of The Clare Crusaders, a local voluntary organisation who provide rehabilitation services, that children in Clare are provided for. Without them, many Clare families would have nowhere to turn, because based on these figures, the HSE is not doing its job,” he claimed.
In their reply to Deputy Carey, the HSE said they are reviewing waiting lists and the manner in which the service is being delivered.
“What we need now is an action plan from the HSE on this issue and we need it within weeks. I want to see targets drawn up and strictly adhered to, in an effort to getting these waiting lists down and improving treatment response times,” he said.
One father of a child with special needs in language and speech commented on Facebook that, realistically, it takes longer than a year and up to as much as two years, to get as assessment.
“It’s a disaster and it’s the early years that matters in these children’s lives,” he commented.
Another mother of a child with a speech and language problem told the The Clare Champion that parents are effectively being forced to seek a private assessment and pay for private therapy because the public waiting list times are so long.
“My little boy is two-and-a-half-years old. We became aware earlier this year that his speech wasn’t developing and we contacted our GP, who sent a referral letter to the HSE speech and language section. After three months, we had heard nothing, so we contacted them to pursue an assessment appointment. We were informed that our son’s name is on the waiting list but that he will most likely not be called for assessment until next spring. That is ridiculous. Who knows how long it would take after that for therapy to commence,” she said.
“We decided to get a private assessment and had an appointment for our son within two weeks. The assessment at €150 was expensive. He started speech therapy the following week with the therapist, which is costing €55 per appointment. It is a lot of money but we cannot afford to wait for a HSE appointment. Our son could be four by the time any treatment would commence. This way he can be helped with his speech and language development now, not in 18 months time,” she added.