Dail Report: A claim that no representative of the Health Service Executive (HSE) has called to a Co Meath family since their children were returned from care is to be investigated.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said he accepted the claim by Labour leader Pat Rabbitte, and would have the matter examined.
Mr Rabbitte said the HSE had subjected the family to an "act of bureaucratic vindictiveness".
He added that the family was not alone in the treatment they had received from the HSE.
Mr Rabbitte said that without warning on March 5th gardaí took the five children of Pádraig and Mary O'Hara into care on foot of a court order by the HSE in the Kells area.
Of the five children, four were autistic, and their separation from their parents and a well-established routine was traumatic.
The parents, he added, were required to submit to psychiatric examination despite the possession by officials of a clinical psychology report testifying to their good parenting and character.
"Since four of their children were diagnosed with autism four years ago, the O'Haras have been engaged in a struggle for basic services with the HSE, which threatened reprisals if the parents went public about their difficulties," said Mr Rabbitte.
"More than seven weeks after the court ordered the immediate return of the children to their parents, no official at any level of the HSE has lifted a telephone to call the O'Haras, whose children had supposedly been at risk."
Mr Ahern said that he had not followed the case in the last few weeks.
"I do not wish to get into saying anything unhelpful about the family or the staff involved.
"The staff had consulted at some length, and had to taken into account the threats that were made on the lives of the children, which were something they could not ignore."
Mr Rabbitte said he did not expect the Taoiseach to recall the detail of the case.
However, Mr Ahern had missed the entire point if he believed that the actions of the HSE personnel were caused by threats made to them or that the children were at risk.
"There is absolutely no evidence to bear that out, and the judge made that clear," he added.
Mr Ahern said that, according to his note, the provision of the multi-disciplinary service, together with all the other service elements, was dependent on the service of a case manager to co-ordinate a complete service delivery.
"An experienced case manager was employed in early 2005 to undertake this work.
"However, as a result of verbal abuse received by telephone from Mrs O'Hara, the case manager resigned.
"Following his resignation, Mrs O'Hara visited his house, and was asked to leave by the case manager's spouse.
"However, Mrs O'Hara returned, and this violation of privacy has had a further distressing impact on the staff member, whose family and home have now been inappropriately involved in the service issue."
