Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 May 2022
99. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Social Protection the engagement that she has had with representatives of the home care sector, the Department of Health and the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation in 2021 and to date in 2022 with a view to urgently resolving the ongoing recruitment and retention challenges in the home care sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24519/22]
View answerIn 2021 and 2022, my Department has engaged with homecare sectoral representatives and directly with employers to support them in filling their vacancies in the homecare sector.
This has taken the form of a number of recruitment events online for Ireland-based jobseekers and also across the EU/EEA in collaboration with EURES. Healthcare Recruitment in Ireland Online Job Days were held in January 2021 (attended by 91 employers) and November 2021 (attended by 51 employers).
In addition, a joint initiative with Home and Community Care Ireland (HCCI) and the Education and Training Boards (ETB) was held in August 2021 and again in March 2022, whereby candidates were sourced from the Live Register and offered training in healthcare with the ETB.
Activities planned for Q3 2022 include a recruitment day in conjunction with HCCI and a webinar/information day in conjunction with Leading Healthcare Providers Skillnet.
In addition, my Department is represented on the recently established Strategic Workforce Advisory Group (under the chairmanship of the Department of Health). The role of this group is to examine and make recommendations around strategic workforce challenges in front-line carer roles in home support and nursing homes. This includes consideration of recruitment, retention, education and training, and career development.
