Child abuse victims 'left waiting for therapy'

The biggest organisation in the country providing therapy services for victims of child abuse says some are waiting more than a year for therapy services.

CARI says it’s important that society remembers that child abuse is a clear and present danger, and not a thing of the past.

It received more than 1100 calls last year and helped more than one hundred families.

Alan Corbett of CARI says victims of child sex abuse are waiting too long for treatment and it’s all because of lack of resources.

“You might have to wait up to 12 months to receive an assessment by the HSE to ask them whether abuse has taken place,” he said today.

“Once that wait is over then you may have another wait for therapy.

“In our Dublin office for example we have people who have been waiting over a year for therapy and this comes down to a lack of resources, lack of money and lack of therapists out there.”