Children’s disability services are facing a critical staffing crisis that continues to worsen across Munster and Dublin, with thousands of vulnerable children left waiting for essential supports.
In Cork, described as a “red spot” for staffing vacancies, none of the seven children’s disability network teams are operating at their funded capacity. One team alone is functioning with 10 fewer staff than it is funded for, severely limiting its ability to provide timely intervention.
The situation is equally concerning elsewhere. A team in Clonmel, Tipperary, has 125 children on waiting lists but has added just one additional therapist since January last year. In Dublin, one team has children who have been waiting for individual family service plans since 2016 – a delay of nine years.
The Dungarvan team in Waterford is attempting to provide care for 499 allocated children, while in Limerick, one understaffed team is down seven professionals despite having 905 children on county waiting lists. This team still managed to see 1,440 children or parents in January alone, highlighting the immense pressure on existing staff.
Labour Party councillor Ciara O’Connor, who received data on Cork City’s services, described the situation as leaving “families in limbo, while staff within the children’s disability network teams face immense pressure to provide services with dangerously understaffed teams.”
Rainbow Club Cork chief executive Karen O’Mahony confirmed the severity of the situation, noting that service access remains inconsistent: “There are families in Rainbow Club that absolutely can’t get services but we have other families that can access and are getting services. I think it depends on where they are.”
O’Connor welcomed a recent pay deal for staff who provide HSE services but do not work directly for the State, while calling for “urgent action” to boost recruitment efforts.
HSE head of disability services for the South West Angela O’Neill cited the “very competitive global market for healthcare talent” as a contributing factor to the ongoing staffing challenges.
A HSE-commissioned review of children’s disability network teams is currently underway and expected to be completed by the end of the year. Meanwhile, thousands of children continue to receive help weekly from these networks, though many others face prolonged waits for critical developmental supports.