I wish to look at one example in the same special school in Tallaght and the broader shift in the model of what we expect an SNA’s role to be, and the struggles that the school and staff go through on a daily basis. This school has a student with type 1 diabetes and epilepsy. The child has increasingly complex needs and seizures approximately every fortnight. The school is dealing with all of this. The student cannot wear a glucose monitor or an insulin pump as his needs are so complex. He is non-verbal. He has no communication device or access to CDNT services. He is completely reliant on staff. In this case SNAs monitor his presentation and bloods and the only way they can do that is by taking a sample and intervening themselves. SNAs routinely support children with diabetes and will monitor bloods. That type of supervision is not possible in this case. Staff are increasingly anxious about taking on responsibilities which would usually be given to nurses. They are involved in decision making when it comes to this child’s medical needs. There are serious concerns in the school about who is responsible and the school is looking for a nurse.

Sentiment score: 0.05

I thank the Minister of State for his engagement tonight. We would be delighted to meet. Regarding this particular medical issue, there are concerns around a lack of training for SNAs in dealing with issues like this. My colleague, Deputy Eoghan Kenny, has brought in a Bill on emergency medical care training for SNAs but this is an ongoing issue. This is an emergency and something they have to deal with on an almost daily basis. There are concerns around liability if something goes wrong, and things will inevitably go wrong in these high-pressure, immediate, decision-making situations.

Sentiment score: 0.02