Parents urge nationwide allergy treatment rollout

A successful allergy treatment programme at Cork University Hospital is now at the centre of a national call to expand life-changing services for children across Ireland.

At a meeting with Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Allergy Action Ireland (AAI) and consultant paediatric allergist Dr Juan Trujillo highlighted the impact of Oral Immunotherapy (OIT) underway in Cork for under-fives, and AAI urged the Government to roll it out nationwide for all.

OIT involves introducing very small amounts of an allergen under specialist supervision and increasing it over time, helping children build tolerance and significantly reduce the risk of severe allergic reactions.

The approach is increasingly used internationally and is transforming outcomes for families living with food allergies.

AAI is calling on the Government to build on the success in Cork by investing in the national rollout of OIT, introducing additional allergy treatments such as Sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT) and Omalizumab, improving access to specialist care, and accelerating the development of a coordinated national allergy service.

Julie Rothwell, parent representative with Allergy Action Ireland, said: “Every decision we make as parents is shaped by risk — from school lunches to birthday parties. Knowing there is a treatment that could make our children safer, and not having access to it, is incredibly difficult.

"The work being done by Dr Trujillo and his team in Cork is giving families real hope. We need to see that level of care available to children over five.”