Voices for Galway walk on Saturday

Date Published: 28-Aug-2007

A city auctioneers company, O’Dolan and Partners, has joined The Making Galway Proud Initiative’s 2007 campaign to shorten the disgraceful four and a half year waiting list for Speech and Occupational Therapy in Galway.

Voices For Galway which consists of parents of Down Syndrome children who need this much needed therapy were angered to hear that over 100 Speech and Occupational Therapists have qualified from college but cannot work because of the government’s failure to fund new posts for them.

These graduates are the first to finish a three year third level course, which was set up to address the unbelievable shortage of Speech and Language Therapists in the health service.

James Harris of The Making Galway Proud Initiative which has chosen this area for their 2007 campaign said: “It is so unfair on the children and parents that need this therapy, even though there are people who can help this dire situation, a large group of children and adults have to suffer because of the lack of funding. This situation could be sorted straight away, why is it always the same story?”

This Saturday will see a large group of people from Galway walk from Galway Docks to Blackrock in Caríosa’s Walk. Caríosa Williams is a four month little girl who was not only born with Down Syndrome but with severe heart problems. This little girl has become the inspiration to the entire 2007 Making Galway Proud campaign for Voices For Galway.

There are still places left and information on the day can be obtained from O’Dolan and Partner’s Auctioneers on 091 865000.