Vol. 488 No. 2
70 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of persons in the age categories 65 to 74 years, 75 to 84 years, 85 to 94 years and over 95 years; and the strategy, if any, he has for service provision to meet the needs of these numbers of older persons. [5806/98]
The information requested by the Deputy is taken from the 1996 census and is as follows: 65-74 = 239,351; 75-84 = 139,868; 85-94 = 32,885; 95+ = 1,778.
Policy on the development of services for older people is based on the report, The Years Ahead which was published in 1988. The report recommended that older people be maintained in dignity and independence at home with the support of the community care services where necessary and when this is no longer possible, that they have access to the best possible medical or long-term care.
I am continuing with the development of sevices for older people along the lines recommended in The Years Ahead report taking into account the recent review of the implementation of the recommendations of this report carried out by the National Council on Ageing and Older People. Additional resources have been made available both in 1997 and 1998 to provide new services for older people or to improve existing services such as specialist departments of medicine of old age attached to general hospitals, community nursing units which provide a wide range of services for older people including respite and day care, day hospitals and day centres, together with better staffing in existing extended care hospitals and in the community services in order to improve support for older people in their homes. Resources have also been provided this year to develop a specialist mental health service for older people, particularly in a number of health board areas where no such service existed up to now. The National Council on Ageing and Older People has identified the need to develop better community support services for older people and I intend to give priority to the enhancement of these services as resources permit.
