Health « Thurles Information

Thousands Of Irish Children Await Initial Disability Team Contact Amid Staffing Shortages.

Thousands of children across Ireland are still waiting for an initial appointment with a Child Disability Network Team, with families in North and South Tipperary among those affected by long delays.

HSE figures show that 8,200 children were on waiting lists for first contact with a CDNT at the end of March, including 5,261 children who had been waiting for more than 12 months. The overall figure marks a fall from 8,648 children recorded at the end of 2025.

The figures show that Tipperary is split across two HSE regions, meaning waiting-list pressures affecting families in the county are recorded under separate regional totals.

North Tipperary falls within HSE Mid West, which also covers Clare and Limerick. In that region, 1,109 children were awaiting first contact with a CDNT, including 599 children who had been waiting for more than a year.

South Tipperary is counted within HSE Dublin and South East, alongside Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford, most of Wicklow and parts of South Dublin. That region had the second-largest waiting list nationally, with 2,078 children awaiting first contact. Of those, 1,432 children had been waiting longer than 12 months.
The split means there is no single headline waiting-list figure for Tipperary in the regional data, despite children in both the north and south of the county being affected by delays.

Nationally, HSE Dublin Midlands had the largest waiting list, with 2,252 children awaiting first contact. Of these, 1,669 had been waiting longer than a year. The area includes Dublin South City and West, Dublin South West, Kildare, West Wicklow, Laois, Offaly, Longford and Westmeath.
HSE Dublin North East recorded 1,908 children waiting for first contact, with 1,269 waiting over a year. The region includes North Dublin, Louth, Meath, Monaghan and most of Cavan.

HSE West and North West, covering Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, West Cavan, Mayo, Galway and Roscommon, had 452 children awaiting contact, while HSE South West, covering Cork and Kerry, had 401 children on waiting lists.
The figures come amid continuing staffing pressures across CDNT services. A report showed that, as of October 2025, the vacancy rate across CDNT posts stood at 18%, with 457 positions unfilled.

The HSE is the lead agency for 43 of the country’s 93 CDNTs. Enable Ireland operates 20 teams, while Brothers of Charity provides six.
Among providers, Enable Ireland had funding for 502.3 whole-time equivalent posts, with 85% filled. Brothers of Charity had 208.9 funded whole-time equivalent posts, with 89% filled.
The highest vacancy rate was recorded in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary, where 54% of posts were vacant. Gorey in Co Wexford and Waterford North City each had vacancy rates of 52%.

At regional level, Dublin and South East had the highest vacancy rate, with one quarter of posts unfilled.
Occupational therapy posts remain under pressure, with 27% vacant, equivalent to 40.9 unfilled positions. Clinical psychology vacancies were also high, with 44% of posts unfilled, or 41.6 vacancies.
There are 93 Child Disability Network Teams aligned with 96 Community Healthcare Networks nationwide. The teams provide services and supports for children and young people from birth to 18 years of age.

Food Alert.

FSAI warn of recall of specific batches of pork mince products due to the presence of Salmonella.

Alert Summary dated Friday, June 12th 2026.

Category 1: For Action.
Alert Notification: 2026.32.
Product Identification: Please see table below.
Batch Code: Please see table below for batch numbers and use by dates.
Country Of Origin: Ireland.

Message: Kepak is recalling the below batches of pork mince products due to the presence of Salmonella.
Recall notices will be displayed at points of sale.

Product.	Pack size.	Use by date.	Batch number.	Approval number.
Lidl Family Pack 100% Irish Pork Mince.	800g.	16/06/2026.	L5159.	IE 329 EC.
SuperValu Fresh Irish Pork Mince.	400g.	16/06/2026.	L5159.	IE 329 EC.
SuperValu Fresh Irish Pork Mince.	800g.	16/06/2026.	L6159.	IE 329 EC.

Nature Of Danger:
People infected with Salmonella typically develop symptoms between 12 and 36 hours after infection, but this can range between 6 and 72 hours. The most common symptom is diarrhoea, which can sometimes be bloody. Other symptoms may include fever, headache, and abdominal cramps. The illness usually lasts 4 to 7 days. Diarrhoea can occasionally be severe enough to require hospital admission. The elderly, infants, and those with impaired immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness.

Action Required: Manufacturers, Wholesalers, Distributors, Caterers & Retailers:
Retailers: Same are requested to remove the implicated batches from sale and display recall notices at point-of-sale.
Consumers: Consumers are advised not to eat the implicated batches.

Food Alert.

FSAI warn of Recall of a batch of Surasang Frozen Oysters, due to the presence of Norovirus.

Alert Summary dated Friday, 12th June 2026.

Category 1: For Action.
Alert Notification: 2026.31.
Product Identification: Surasang Frozen Oysters; pack size: 226g.
Batch Code Best-before date: 25/04/2027.
Country Of Origin: Republic of Korea.

Message:
The above batch of Surasang Frozen Oysters is being recalled due to the presence of Norovirus. Point-of-sale recall notices will be displayed in stores supplied with the implicated batch.

Nature Of Danger:
Norovirus is one of the most common causes of gastroenteritis (stomach bugs) in Ireland. It is also known as the winter vomiting bug. Infection with norovirus can cause nausea (often sudden onset), vomiting (often projectile) and watery diarrhoea. Symptoms usually begin around 12 to 48 hours after becoming infected, and last 1 or 2 days. Most people make a full recovery, however some people (usually the very young or older adults) may become very dehydrated and require hospital treatment. Norovirus is very contagious and can spread easily from person to person. Good hygiene is important in preventing others from becoming infected. This includes thorough hand washing. Food preparation should also be avoided until 3 days after symptoms have gone.

Action Required: Manufacturers, Wholesalers, Distributors, Caterers & Retailers:
Wholesalers/Distributors: Same are requested to contact their affected customers and recall the implicated batch and provide a point-of-sale recall notice to retailer customers.
Retailers: Same are requested to remove the implicated batch from sale and display recall notices at point-of-sale.

Consumers: Consumers are advised not to eat the implicated batch.

Rotunda Row – Private Maternity Care – Public Contracts – Question of Refunds.

The recent dispute involving the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin has raised important questions about public healthcare, private maternity care and the obligations of consultants working under public-only contracts.

At the centre of the controversy is the Public-Only Consultant Contract. This contract was introduced as part of efforts to reduce private care within Irish public hospitals and strengthen the public health system. Consultants who sign it receive public salaries on the understanding that they will not carry out private practice in public hospital settings, except where specific rules allow it.

The issue arose because some consultants at Dublin’s Rotunda hospital, who were on public-only contracts, were still treating private maternity patients on the hospital campus. This led to a clash between the hospital, the HSE and the Minister for Health, Ms Jennifer Carroll MacNeill.

The Rotunda initially defended its position, saying it believed women should have choice in maternity care and continuity with a consultant during pregnancy and birth. However, the HSE and the Minister said the arrangement was not in line with the terms of the public-only contract or the hospital’s agreement with the State.
The pressure on the hospital increased when the HSE warned that continued non-compliance could lead to consequences under its service arrangement, including the possible withholding of funding. The Rotunda has now agreed that consultants on public-only contracts will no longer treat private patients in the hospital.

A further question now concerns women who paid for private or semi-private care from consultants who were, at the same time, employed under public-only contracts. The Minister suggested that women who paid for such care in 2026 may be entitled to refunds. The Rotunda, however, has said that whether refunds are owed is an issue between the consultant and the private patient.

That distinction matters. The hospital appears to be saying that the private fee arrangement was not necessarily with the hospital itself, but with individual consultants. However, the wider public concern remains; if a consultant was being paid by the State to provide public-only care, should patients also have been charged privately for treatment in the same public hospital setting?
This row is not just about one hospital. It goes to the heart of a wider debate in Irish healthcare; how to balance patient choice, continuity of care, consultant contracts and equality of access. Many women value private maternity care because it can offer reassurance and continuity. But public hospitals are heavily funded by taxpayers, and the State’s policy is to ensure that public resources are not used in ways that give paying patients unfair priority.

The Rotunda is one of Ireland’s busiest and best-known maternity hospitals. The dispute has therefore become a test case for how strictly the public-only consultant contract will be enforced across the health service.

For affected patients, the immediate concern is clarity; who was paid, what service was promised, and whether any refund is due.

For the public, the bigger issue is whether Ireland is serious about separating public and private care in public hospitals, or whether exceptions will continue to blur the line.

Tipperary Food Business Among Seven Closure Orders Issued In May.

A Tipperary food business was among seven premises served with Closure Orders by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland during May.

Jilly & Joe’s, located at the Dove Hill Centre in Ballynoran, Carrick-on-Suir, was served with a Closure Order relating specifically to the cooling of cooked foods. The closed activity involved the cooling of cooked foods including meat, poultry, gravies, sauces, rice and potatoes.

According to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, one of the issues identified in May’s enforcement actions was that food was not being cooled in line with the critical cooling limits set out in a business’s HACCP food safety plan. Proper cooling of cooked foods is an important food safety control, as incorrect cooling can allow harmful bacteria to grow.

The order against Jilly & Joe’s was one of five Closure Orders served under the European Union (Official Controls in Relation to Food Legislation) Regulations, 2020.

Across the country, seven Closure Orders were issued in total during the month. Other businesses affected included premises in Meath, Dublin, Westmeath, Carlow and Limerick.

The FSAI said the reasons behind May’s enforcement orders included serious hygiene and food safety concerns. These included evidence of rodent activity, dirty food preparation areas, unsafe food handling practices, inadequate cleaning, poor waste management, lack of hand washing controls and inappropriate food storage.

FSAI Chief Executive Mr Greg Dempsey said the issues identified pointed to clear failures in basic food safety controls. He said food safety management systems are not optional and must be properly implemented, maintained and monitored.

He added that where basic standards are not met, there is a risk to public health and enforcement action will continue where necessary.

Details of food businesses served with enforcement orders are published on the FSAI website. Closure Orders remain listed for three months from the date a premises is judged to have corrected the food safety issue.