Over 11,500 children waiting for first contact from disability network teams
In documents seen by breakingnews.ie, 11,527 children were waiting for first contact from a CDNT. Of those children, 7,802 were waiting over 12 months for first contact.
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This is a drop from the 12,106 children waiting for their first contact at the end of April.
A child disability network team (CDNT) provides specialised support and services for children who have a disability and complex health needs associated with their disability.
The teams are made up of professionals with expertise in disability who work closely together. They include occupational therapists, psychologists, physiotherapists, social workers, and speech and language therapists.
The area with the most children waiting for first contact at the end of May was HSE Dublin and North East, which covers North Dublin, Louth, Meath, Monaghan and most of Cavan.
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In this area, 3,086 children were waiting for first contact, with 2,274 waiting over 12 months.
In HSE Dublin Midlands, which covers Dublin South City and West and Dublin South West, Kildare, West Wicklow, Laois, Offaly, Longford and Westmeath, there were 3,047 children waiting for first contact.
Of that figure, there were 2,243 waiting over 12 months for first contact.
In HSE Dublin and South East, covering Carlow, Kilkenny, South Tipperary, Waterford, Wexford, and most of Wicklow, there were 2,733 children waiting for first contact.
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In this area, there were 135 children at the end of May waiting over a year.
HSE Midwest, covering Clare, Limerick, and North Tipperary, there were 1,178 children waiting for first contact. 614 of those children were waiting over 12 months.
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At HSE West and North West, which provides care for Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, West Cavan, Mayo, Galway and Roscommon, there were 878 children waiting for first contact, with 324 waiting over 12 months.
There are 93 CDNTs, aligned to 96 Community Healthcare Networks across the country, providing services and supports for children aged from birth to 18 years of age.
Some 1,416 children who are on the CDNT waiting list participated in one or more individual and/or group intervention appointments during May 2025.
The CDNTs are currently providing services and supports for 44,000 children and strategies and supports for urgent cases on the waitlist where staffing resources allow.
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