Why ice victims are getting a bad break from the government – twice

MANY people who slipped on ice and ended up in A&E with broken bones will need physiotherapy to ensure they return to normal mobility. We are all entitled to physiotherapy in public outpatients’ departments without charge.

The reality is that due to the HSE’s non-recruitment policy and the abolition of some sanctioned posts, there are not enough physiotherapists employed by the HSE to deal adequately with the existing workload, let alone deal with the hundreds who had accidents due to the ice. Some areas have the much trumpeted community care teams, which normally include a physiotherapist. Other areas don’t. However, whether these teams can cope with the increased workload is doubtful. And it’s not clear either whether accident victims who are not medical card-holders will be treated by the teams without charge.

In these accident cases, if appropriate physiotherapy isn’t received, the person may be left with less mobility than before. Those who are aware of this risk will no doubt reluctantly opt to pay a private physio. Many would argue it was the Government’s incompetence and inaction that helped to cause these accidents, so it will be particularly annoying for those paying for private physio that, thanks to the Government, they will only receive tax relief at standard rate on the physio fees as opposed to relief at the top rate which applied until recently. But tax concessions in these difficult times have to be limited – for example, to “needy” pensioners who write a one-off book with help from a ghostwriter.