More speech therapists but still the waiting continues
Waiting to be treated - Children waiting over a year for speech and language assessment: Dublin/mid Leinster - 701, Dublin north east - 1,405, West - 166, South - 245.
A staggering 23,646 children and teenagers are on waiting lists nationwide for either assessment or treatment for speech therapy, new figures reveal.
There are 10,179 waiting for an assessment and more than 1,000 have been on lists for a year to two years.
Another 13,466 have been through assessment and are now queueing for treatment, more than 1,500 for a year to two years.
The latest figures provided by the Health Service Executive (HSE) show that serious delays continue, despite hiring more staff.
According to Ger Reaney, HSE official, the number of speech and language therapists employed has increased from 497 in 2004 to 776 by the end of last December.
"Each child who presents to the HSE's Speech and Language Therapy Service has an initial assessment to determine their individual need for therapy.
"The therapist, in conjunction with the parents or carer, will determine the severity of the child's difficulties and prioritise for therapy accordingly.
"The level of intervention is in line with clinical policy, age and severity of the diagnosis. The waiting period of intervention is dependent on the nature and severity of the disorder following assessment," she said in a parliamentary reply to David Stanton TD.
The HSE says it has been trying to improve the problems faced by those on waiting lists by providing training for parents and carers.
Therapy is also delivered in group settings to maximise the resources available.
A breakdown of the numbers waiting for therapy show that it is highest in the south of the country, with 4,551 children facing delays -- higher than in the Dublin/mid-Leinster area where the population is highest.
In the west 3,166 are waiting and in the Dublin north/north-east region it is 1,405.
At the same time speech and language therapists are being forced to emigrate due to a lack of permanent jobs.
Parents are urged to try to stimulate their child's speech and language skills from early on by making faces and noises.
- Start looking at books with your baby from an early age. You don't have to read the words, just talk about what you can see.
- Point out things you see when you're out and about ('There's a bus'). As your baby gets older, add more detail ('There's a red bus').
- As your baby grows, have fun singing nursery rhymes and songs, especially those with actions like 'Row, row, row your boat' .
- Background noise will make it harder for your child to listen, so switch off the TV.
- If your child is trying to make a word but gets it wrong, say the word properly. For example, if your baby points to a cat and says 'Ca!' say, 'Yes, it's a cat.' Don't criticise or tell them off for getting the word wrong.
- Get your child's attention by saying their name at the start of a sentence.
- Restrict use of their dummy to sleep time. It's hard to learn to talk with a dummy in your mouth.
- Eilish O'Regan
Irish Independent
