A Kerry mother says the national shortage of physiotherapists, occupational therapists, and speech and language therapists is affecting the care of her son and other patients.
Twenty-eight-year-old Anthony O'Carroll from Ballyduff is a patient at the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dublin.
He sustained a traumatic brain injury and multiple complex fractures in a motorbike racing accident on the Isle of Man last year.
Anthony O'Carroll's mother, Mary, says the staff at the NRH are amazing but believes her son's therapy is being affected by a shortage of therapists.
In a statement to Radio Kerry News, the National Rehabilitation Hospital said it is committed to delivering a safe and appropriate level of care in the best interests of its patients at all times, “within its resources”.
It continued, “Treatment programmes can be complex and... patients’ therapy time can vary as their clinical needs differ.”
While it is not appropriate for the hospital to comment on individual cases, as a tertiary rehabilitation hospital and national provider of complex specialist rehabilitation services, the NRH is committed to delivering a safe and appropriate level of care in the best interest of our patients at all times, and to providing high quality services within its resources.
The appropriate level of intensity of rehabilitation services is vital to deliver the treatment programmes required, based on patients’ individual clinical needs. Treatment programmes can be complex and may need to be adjusted at times to best suit the patient’s clinical requirements. During the rehabilitation programme, these facets of care and support are reviewed by the rehabilitation team, along with patients and family as central members of the rehabilitation team. Patients’ therapy time can vary as their clinical needs differ between individuals.
At the NRH, patient and family feedback is vitally important to us and the hospital has robust systems and processes in place to address any concerns raised about any aspect of our services. Assistance is also available to support patients and families through the process. The NRH strongly advocates on behalf of our patients for services we can deliver within our resources, and those delivered by other services in the healthcare system as appropriate and depending on patient needs.
Rehabilitation teams at the NRH continue to work collaboratively, with compassion and a commitment to excellence in the delivery of specialist complex rehabilitation services to all patients in our care.
Meanwhile, the Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland says the sustainability of OT services in primary care is now at risk due to underfunding, with several areas considering suspending services because of a shortage of critical staff.
Elsewhere, the CEO of the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists, Marie Ó Mír (PRON: O Meer), says they, under the umbrella of the Health and Social Care Professions Alliance (HSCPA), have been highlighting the serious impact of the HSE’s Pay and Numbers Strategy.
The HSE has previously stated that this strategy enables it to stabilise workforce numbers and increase staffing levels.
However, unions and professional bodies dispute this.
Ms Ó Mír believes a recruitment embargo is forcing many more people into emergency departments.
