Today, we called on the Government to allocate €2.3 million in Budget 2027 to fund 20 additional specialist case managers and establish a nationwide brain injury case management service. 

Our 2027 Pre-Budget Submission warns that thousands of people affected by brain injury are being left without essential supports because services are not available equally across the country and community disability organisations continue to face insecure funding. 

“Postcode lottery” is impacting widely on rehabilitation  

Each year, approximately 19,000 people in Ireland sustain a brain injury, yet only around 400 individuals currently have access to a specialist case manager. This has created what our organisation describes as a “postcode lottery,” where access to support depends largely on where a person lives. This inequitable access is affecting people’s rehabilitation, independence and ability to rebuild their lives after brain injury.

A call for national coverage 

Case managers play a critical role in helping survivors and families navigate the often overwhelming journey from hospital to home. They link people with health and social services, support rehabilitation planning and help individuals live more independently in their own communities. 

We are seeking funding to recruit 20 additional specialist case managers, which would enable the roll-out of a national case management service and ensure equitable access for all brain injury survivors, regardless of location. 

The below map shows the current case management provisions. The counties shown in red do not have a case management service.

Preventing inappropriate nursing home placements 

Currently, over 1,100 people under the age of 65 reside in nursing homes in Ireland. Specialist case managers can help prevent inappropriate placements of younger brain injury survivors in nursing homes designed for older people by ensuring people are connected to the right rehabilitation and community-based supports at the right time. 

Our service data demonstrate the impact of specialist case management and rehabilitation supports: 

• Over 60% of people entering our assisted and transitional living services come from nursing home settings, and 

• Half of those referred ultimately transition back to community living with reduced support needs.  

Sustainability pressures in disability services 

Alongside our case management proposal, we are urging Government to introduce multi-annual funding for Section 39 organisations, warning that current funding instability is placing essential disability services at risk. 

Our organisation is calling for a funding model that reflects the true cost of service delivery, including inflation, auto-enrolment pension costs and the increasing cost of regulation. 

Delivering on government commitments 

These measures are essential to deliver on Ireland’s neurorehabilitation policy and Programme for Government commitments, and to ensure that access to rehabilitation support does not depend on geography.