Vol. 559 No. 2
162 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children if he will examine a situation where, as reported in a publication (details supplied) on 25 November 2002, over 100 beds in private nursing homes in the Dublin area lay vacant while acute hospital beds were occupied by elderly patients requiring extended lower level care. [26039/02]
As the Deputy will be aware, responsibility for administration of the health services in the Dublin area rests, in the first instance, with the ERHA. The authority informs me that not all of the beds available in private nursing homes are suitable for patients being discharged from acute hospitals because of their location or because of their inability to meet the nursing and care needs of such patients.
At present the three area health boards in the eastern region are fully or partially subventing a total of 3,001 beds in private nursing homes. Of these there are 1,589 beds partially subvented and 1,412 beds fully subvented.
For example, this year the Eastern Regional Health Authority is spending approximately €45 million on subvented private nursing homes beds. This is an increase of €8 million on what was spent last year.
Extended care is provided in long-stay units and welfare homes throughout the eastern region. There are over 2,200 beds in public and voluntary hospitals and homes across the region.
The ERHA, in conjunction with their three area health boards and the voluntary hospitals in the region, has introduced a scheme whereby 24 hour packages of care are put in place to enable people who would otherwise have to go to nursing homes to return home.
All the authority's research shows that older people wish to continue to live at home where this is at all possible and this new initiative together with a scheme which the authority is piloting in assistive technology is aimed at meeting this need. Assistive technology uses the latest technology to enable older people at home to open and close curtains, answer the door and do various other household tasks.
