Under 1,200 children had CDNT appointments in October

Michael Bolton

Some 1,175 children had an appointment with a Child Disability Network Team (CDNT) in October, figures from the HSE reveal.

This is a drop from the 1,283 children who took part in appointments in September.

The figures, however, released under the Freedom of Information Act 2014, show a drop in waiting times for first contact, with 9,620 children waiting for first contact from a CDNT.

Of those children, 6248 are waiting over a year.

The waiting list has dropped by 25 per cent from 12,920 since December 31st 2024, and reduced from 16,522 since July 2023, a drop of 42 per cent.

HSE Dublin Midlands, which covers Dublin South City and West and Dublin South West, Kildare, West Wicklow, Laois, Offaly, Longford and Westmeath, has 2534 children waiting for first contact, with 1902 waiting over 12 months.

In HSE Dublin and North East, covering North Dublin, Louth, Meath, Monaghan and most of Cavan, 2472 children are waiting for first contact, with 1662 waiting over a year for first contact.

HSE Dublin and South East covering Carlow, Kilkenny, South Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford, and most of Wicklow, 2306 children are waiting to hear from a disability team, with 1718 on waiting lists for over a year.

HSE Midwest, providing care for providing care to Clare, Limerick, and North Tipperary, 1185 children are waiting to hear from a disability team, with 639 waiting over a year.

HSE South West, covering Cork and Kerry, has 581 children waiting to hear from a disability team, with 176 waiting over a year.

At HSE West and North West, covering Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, West Cavan, Mayo, Galway and Roscommon, 542 children are on waiting lists, with 151 waiting over 12 months for furst contact.

The HSE said that as of April 2025, 18 per cent of posts remain unfilled in CDNTs, with 445.4 posts vacant. This is an eight per cent drop in vacant posts since the previous review in October 2024.

The highest vacancy percentage is at Leopardstown three, with a rate of 55.37 per cent.

At CDNT Clonmel, the vacancy rate is 47.64 per cent. At Carlow CDNT, 46.38 per cent of posts are vacant, with over 12 positions short.

At the CDNT in Gorey, Co Wexford, there is a 46. 15 per cent vacancy rate. In South Louth CDNT, there is a 42.9 per cent vacancy rate.

The HSE said "there is an acute need for sustained improvement in the workforce profile to meet the needs of children with disabilities and their families and to address the lengthy waiting lists for services."