Mary Harney
Question:56 Miss Harney asked the Minister for Health, in view of the delay for speech therapy, especially among children in the Eastern Health Board area, the plans, if any, he has to recruit additional speech therapists. [6391/95]
Written Answers. - Speech Therapists' Recruitment.
Limerick East): The recruitment of additional speech therapists is a matter for the health boards. The Eastern Health Board has increased its complement of speech therapists from 28 to 61 since 1990 in view of the need to develop this service for both adults and children in the region.
I have made £2 million additional revenue funding available this year for the development of services for people with physical disabilities and I am currently awaiting proposals from the health boards for the allocation of this funding. The Eastern Health Board has received £700,000 and the board has indicated that it is now examining areas of particular need, including improvements to the occupational therapy and physiotherapy services, for the distribution of this year's funding.