Sinn Féin Councillor for Tallaght Central has criticised Government’s chronic lack of underfunding into the community healthcare sector across Dublin South West.
Cllr Whelan stated: “I was contacted in recent weeks by a constituent who received a letter from the HSE stating that the Public Health Nursing Service is moving to priority status in their area due to staff shortages, meaning they must prioritise the services that are provided by them. The letter stated that the PHN service would not be in a position to deliver a routine health and development assessment for this person’s child.
Developmental checks provided by the PHN service are critical for parents, particularly new parents, in identifying potential developmental delays in young children. This is yet another area that Government have chronically underfunded and left decimated by the recruitment embargo implemented by the HSE from October ’23 to July ’24.
This is just one of many cases I’m dealing with where the community healthcare sector is not providing the service it is supposed to provide to the community, pushing people into the private sector, creating further financial strain. This Government have refused to put the proper resources in place to tackle this crisis to reduce the strain on people who require their service”
