‘Luke has to wait a year for HSE assessment’ for acute autism

Luke Aherne prefers light switches to toys and “does something with his eyes” that the two-year-old’s mother Melanie says is a giveaway to his condition.

She recognised early on that there was something awry — he wasn’t talking — and a public health nurse referred them to the Early Intervention (EI) Forum to review Luke’s case and to refer him on to the most appropriate service.

“We sent off the referral form in May and we thought we’d be seen in June, but it took until September. The forum referred us on to the Brothers of Charity,” Melanie says.