Deputy Michael Lowry has once again raised the absence of Paediatric Palliative Care in the South East Region following news that two more families have reached out for the crucial service, which has not been in place in the region since 2017.
Responding in the Dáil the Taoiseach Leo Veradkar committed to convening a meeting in the Department of the Taoiseach involving the Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly and the HSE to get a proper overview of Paediatric Palliative Care Service and to fix the issues once and for all.
Deputy Lowry had highlighted the lack of Paediatric Palliative care in the south east region of the HSE in December when a 7 year old child in Ballymacarbry, the late Danny Norris was in need of the service. A full Palliative Home Care Package was ultimately provided after Danny’s parents went public with their situation. However, his mother Lisa, who continues to campaign to have the service restored, says that the post of Paediatric Palliative Care Consultant in the region remain vacant and training for the existing community Palliative Care Nursing team in Paediatric Palliative Care has yet to be put in place.
