Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 2 December 2004
35 Mr. P. Breen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the funding which has been given to each health board to appoint case officers to deal with abuse of the elderly; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31808/04]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, the report of the Working Group on Elder Abuse, Protecting Our Future, was launched on 11 November 2002. This report, in starting with a definition of elder abuse and recommending the putting in place of structures to deal with suspected cases will, hopefully, give older people who feel they are the subject of abuse in any shape or form, the confidence to report their anxieties, as appropriate, to a social worker, a public health nurse, a member of the Garda Síochána or any professional or care worker.
One of the recommendations in the elder abuse report is the establishment of a national implementation group and this group was established in December 2003 and has commenced its work.
In addition, funding of €0.8 million was provided in 2003 to commence implementation of the elder abuse programme. In 2004 an additional €0.075 million was allocated to each health board for its continued implementation, including the appointment of case workers.
