Angry father slams ‘penny pinching’ HSE
“YOU CAN’T USE SOME KIND OF CLINICAL FORMULA TO PREDICT HOW OFTEN A CHILD MAY HAVE TO GO TO THE TOILET’
THE HSE has been accused of “penny pinching” by a Glanworth father who was told to cut down on the amount of nappies his daughter with severe mental and physical disabilities uses each day.
Padraig Moynihan, who is the full-time carer for his eightyear-old daughter Gobnait, told The Corkman the HSE ruled that she needed just four changes of nappy daily – despite the fact that she could require up to twice that amount.
“They see it as being a simple equation of what goes in and what comes out. Anyone who has a child, regardless of their condition, knows this is ridiculous. You can’t use some kind of clinical formula to predict how often a child may have to go to the toilet,” said an exasperated Padraig.
To add insult to injury, HSE officials even sent out a representative from the nappy manufacturer who said that Padraig and his wife, Catherine, were not using the nappies provided to their full capacity.
“Essentially, what we were told was that in order to keep the number of nappies at the level dictated by the HSE we should wait until each one is full before it was changed,” said Padraig.
“In effect, this could mean leaving Gobnait lying in her own waste, sometimes for hours on end,” he added.
THE Glanworth father of a young girl with severe mental and physical disabilities has accused the HSE of “penny pinching” after he was told to cut down on the amount of nappies his daughter uses each day.
Padraig Moynihan is the full-time carer for his eightyear-old daughter Gobnait, whose condition means that she is unable to do anything for herself, has to wear nappies permanently and requires round-the-clock care.
Padraig told The Corkman that the HSE had assessed Gobnait’s condition, ruling that she needed just four changes of nappies per day – despite the fact that she could regularly require double that amount.
He said Gobnait, who has to be fed through a tube, had been assessed purely on her intake of food a number of years ago without any consideration at all given to how often each day her nappies may have to be changed,
“They see it as being a simple equation of what goes in and what comes out. Anyone who has a child, regardless of their condition, knows this is ridiculous. You can’t use some kind of clinical formula to predict how often a child may have to go to the toilet,” said an exasperated Padraig.
“For example, Gobnait will be teething until she is well into her teens. When a child is teething you need more nappy changes to ensure their bottom does not get sore or raw. That’s before you even take into consideration the times that Gobnait may have an upset stomach.”
To add insult to injury the HSE officials even sent out a representative from the nappy manufacturer who said that Padraig and his wife Catherine were not using the nappies provided to their full capacity.
“Essentially, what we were told was that in order to keep the number of nappies at the level dictated by the HSE we should wait until each one is full before it was changed. In effect, this would mean leaving Gobnait lying in her own waste, sometimes for hours on end,” said Padraig.
“That is inhumane and something that as parents we are not prepared to do under any circumstances. We have spent years trying to get Gobnait’s condition under control and are simply not prepared to have to go through that again because the HSE are penny pinching and do not seem to have the capacity to apply a bit of common sense to our situation.”
Padraig said Gobnait’s nappies are delivered in batches every two months and when they run out he and his wife have to buy more at €25 per packet.
“We are provided with quite a few nappies, but it is often the case that this is not enough. For example, at the moment we have less than 30 left to manage for the best part of a week,” he said.
As if this were not bad enough, Padraig said he has also been told by the public health nurse to reduce the number of disposable gloves he uses. Currently, he could use up to 35 pairs a day to give Gobnait her various medications.
“We were told by a neurologist that in order to reduce the risk of infection I have to change gloves each time we give Gobnait her meds. Now we have been asked if we could give two meds at a time to reduce the number of gloves we use, despite the advise of the neurologist,” said Padraig.
He said the cost of the gloves works out at just 12c a pair.
“What was a ridiculous situation with the nappies has now just become farcical. All for the sake of saving what is, in the scheme of things, a relatively small amount of money. However, to us the cost buying nappies and disposable gloves would all add up over a period of time,” said Padraig.
“We love our daughter and would never put her in care. But, the HSE should take into account how much it would cost if I was not Gobnait’s fulltime carer,” he added.
In a statement, Cork Kerry Community Healthcare said that while they could not comment on individual cases in order to protect people’s privacy, there was “never any question that essential supplies would be witheld or withdrawn”.
“As a general point, incontenence suppliers are provided on the medically assessed need of the person. A person in need of essential supplies will not be left without them,” read the statement.
“The public health nurse is always available to discuss issues around provision of supplies, and decisions are reviewed in line with clinical need.”