Cork Mum Speaks Out About Son's Wheelchair Wait

Wednesday, 15 November 2017 16:17

Fiona King says her three-year-old Adam is in urgent need of a wheelchair

A Cork mother whose son has a rare form of brittle bone disease says his wait for a wheelchair is compromising his dignity and safety.

Fiona King says her three-year-old Adam is in urgent need of a wheelchair as he has become too heavy to lift and when he wants to play with his siblings outdoors he's forced to crawl on wet and damp surfaces which will further exasperate his condition.

The Killeagh mother applied for a wheelchair for Adam at the start of the summer but she says she's been given no indication as to his priority on the list or how long a wait he faces.

In a statement to RedFM News the HSE says Cork Kerry Community Health Care has a finite budget for the supply of Aids and Appliances such as wheelchairs and the budget does not extend to meet all of applications for funding immediately.

31 people are currently waiting up to three months in Cork, 20 are waiting between 3-6 months , three people are waiting between 6-12 months and five people waiting longer than 12 months.

The HSE says that anyone who is waiting for more than a year would either have an application categorised as "non-essential" or be waiting for a replacement of equipment they are using at the moment.

However speaking to RedFM News Fiona says her son urgently needs a wheelchair to have a better quality of life: