Irish Examiner view: Voluntary smartphone ban will be disregarded by many parents

Wed, 08 Nov, 2023 - 01:12

Education Minister Norma Foley is to bring a memo to Cabinet on restricting smartphone use in primary schools, a move that is sure to meet with general approval.

There are ongoing concerns over the impact of smartphones on children’s capacity to pay attention, not to mention the potential for cyberbullying and for exposure to pornography.

On top of those considerations, only yesterday Amnesty International described Tiktok as one platform which “poses danger” to children.

This blunt description is all the more alarming as the Chinese social media giant is targeted specifically at young users.

A closer look at Ms Foley’s memo to Cabinet, however, is a little dispiriting — she is to ask parents to take a “collective decision” not to buy smartphones for children. She has acknowledged that a ban on smartphones cannot be legislated for, and so is seeking an opt-in voluntary approach.

There is an obvious problem here with asking parents to opt into this scheme voluntarily, as it goes without saying that some parents will disregard such proposals and buy their children smartphones anyway. And, as anyone who has ever dealt with primary school-age children knows, if one girl or boy in a classroom has a smartphone, the rest of the class will want one as well.

Even if some way were found to ensure that primary schoolchildren do not use smartphones, there is a further paradox waiting just around the corner.

Secondary schools conduct so much business online now that, from first year onwards, pupils are expected to have immediate online access.

The most obvious way to expedite that is through a smartphone.

There is an essential contradiction here in banning smartphones from primary school children, but relying heavily on smartphones for the same children three months after they leave sixth class. A more effective approach than the opt-in voluntary scheme mentioned above is needed. But, even if such a scheme were adopted in primary schools, it is sadly only deferring potential problems by just a few weeks.

Respect is paramount

Last week, HSE chief Bernard Gloster advised hospitals in a memo that if older patients were in need of nursing home care after leaving hospital, but a bed was not available locally, those patients could be discharged to another location temporarily.

Widely interpreted as a measure to speed up the discharge of elderly patients, the message drew fire immediately.

Consultants urged the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission to intervene, while Age Action stated it was “deeply concerned at the tone of this memo and what it implies about the value and respect of older persons”. It was no surprise to see HSE chief clinical officer Colm Henry try to tidy up the mess, while Nursing Homes Ireland stated: “The principle of residents’ choice is critically important, obviously.”

It might be fruitful to consider this development in light of another story which emerged yesterday, in which research showed patients who visit a hospital emergency department when they are most crowded face an increased risk of dying within 10 days.

The research is not specific to Ireland, nor does it focus on the elderly, but it is sobering to consider the implications of those findings in the context of older adults’ experience of emergency departments. It has become depressingly familiar to read of elderly patients spending days at a time awaiting treatment on trolleys and chairs in hospital corridors.

The Gloster memo indicates a wish to get older patients out of hospital quickly. This is necessary to keep beds available for new patients, which is a consideration for all hospitals — even if the tone of the memo left something to be desired, as indicated by Age Action.

Considered alongside the research showing the risk to life of attending an overcrowded emergency department, however, the memo takes on a different significance. Can it be seen as a tacit admission that a hospital is simply not the optimal environment in which a patient can recover?

Bypass opening is long overdue

After many years of anticipation, the Macroom bypass is fully open — the final section of the N22 bypass, by Baile Bhúirne, was officially opened on Monday, marking the completion of the €280m project.

Approximately 22km in length, the new bypass took three and a half years to construct. The project involved breaking and blasting over 500,000 cubic metres of rock, with the rock recycled to form the foundation of the road throughout the project.

This infrastructural development was long overdue and should make a significant difference to Baile Mhic Íre and Baile Bhúirne, by removing traffic travelling between Cork to Killarney from those villages. The new road could cut the driving time between Cork and Killarney by up to 20 minutes, while also make driving in the area safer overall.

This is a significant consideration this week, when four people died in a single day on the roads in Donegal, Monaghan, and Dublin.

An obvious question is whether an opportunity was missed with the lack of cycle lanes along the new stretch of road.

Cycling routes have been critical to boosting tourism in parts of the country, from Mayo to Waterford, and the N22 heading west of Macroom looks like an ideal candidate for the greenway treatment. Perhaps a Muskerry Greenway will be the next grand opening necessary near the county bounds.

Irish Examiner view: Micheál Martin's delicate balancing act