Only one in three Galway babies gets vital check-up

By Siobhán Holliman MORE than 60 per cent of babies in Co Galway are failing to get crucial development checks on time because of staffing problems within the HSE. The Tuam Herald understands that the constraints in filling vacancies in community care and local health offices along with cutbacks are putting a range of services in jeopardy. Startling figures show that just 36 per cent of children in Galway have had their development check before they reach ten months, compared to the target set by the HSE of 90 per cent. Problems are also increasing in the area of Speech and Language therapy where nearly a quarter of patients are waiting between four and eight months and some are forced to wait for over a year. The delay is causing concern among parents who fear an early sign of an illness, disease or other condition will go unnoticed and could result in life-long consequences. Developmental checks are carried out free of charge, usually in local health clinics, to check babies' development against a series of norms for their age such as eyesight, hearing, motor development, vocalization and general growth. Galway is in the bottom five in the country in terms of meeting the development check target with the majority of counties achieving between 77 and 100 per cent. The Tuam Herald understands that many senior staff within the Primary, Community and Continuing Care Services (PCCC) are extremely concerned and frustrated at the current crisis. Further hits are expected in the areas of community medical staffing and nurses, meaning the nine-month development checks will not be the only child service to suffer, the strain could also put the school immunisation programmes at risk. The HSE West has acknowledged the problem and warns that it is set to continue into the future. It says the moratorium on replacing staff who have left is exacerbating the problem. 'We have lost several such posts in Co Galway over the last number of years, and have been unable to replace them due to the moratorium on public service recruitment. This has led to delays in developmental assessments. 'Every effort is being made to deploy the existing staff working in Co Galway to meet the greatest clinical needs in the community. However, we are anticipating that the backlog will continue for the time being,' said a spokesperson. The HSE West is already under severe pressure after €100 million was slashed from its budget for this year and it had a closing deficit of €22 million. Top management has indicated that cost reductions and service restructuring will be introduced in order to maintain services at current levels, but it's understood that community services, such as those provided in local health clinics, are facing even further pressure with the rising patient numbers and reduced resources.