Vol. 399 No. 7
15 Mr. Kavanagh asked the Minister for Health if he has any plans to introduce additional community care support for carers of elderly persons, such as additional respite services or breakaway facilities; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I am committed to the implementation of the recommendations of "The Years Ahead — A Policy for the Elderly" which has been accepted in principle by the Government. Five million pounds has been made available this year to develop services for the elderly and to implement "The Years Ahead." The developments will be concentrated on: home nursing and home helps; community facilities such as short term care and day care, and additional places in nursing homes. The effect of these developments will be to improve local community services and to support the carers of elderly persons.
Would the Minister not agree with me that generally carers work a seven day week all the year round and despite the recent improvements carers need regular breaks from their work? While the Minister's reply gives some information, the Minister has not specifically stated what additional help will be available at various times of the year which would allow carers to take weekend breaks or a short holiday away from the very tiresome and heavy work they do, which is a great saving to the State in keeping people out of hospital.
I agree with Deputy Kavanagh about the need to consider the position of carers, and the Government did that by introducing for the first time a new carer's allowance in the budget. This development will be a significant improvement for carers. In addition, over the past three years I have been advocating that the health boards provide more respite care and this will be done as a result of the allocation of £5 million, so that as the Deputy suggested people who are looking after their own elderly will be able to have a break.
The Minister has referred to the introduction of the new carer's allowance but does he not accept that carers are not allowed to continue with stamping arrangements while they are doing this job and this will take away from the benefits that may be given to the elderly? Usually, it is a family member who has another job who decides to give it up to take care of the elderly person, and if they take up the carer's allowance they are no longer eligible for social welfare credits.
This seems to be a matter for another Minister.
The implementation of the carer's scheme is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Social Welfare. However, the carer's allowance is a significant advance in the provision of support for carers and this major advance will be of tremendous benefit to my own Department who have responsibility for the delivery of service.
I very much regret that this significant report, "The Years Ahead", is gathering dust in the Department and is not being acted upon. Will the Minister give a commitment to the House that the specific recommendation to establish panels of part-time district nurses — general nurses available on a part-time basis — will be established in each health board to ensure that nursing services will be available other than on a nine to five, five-day week basis from now on and especially during the coming winter?
We made the allocations to each of the health boards at the beginning of April. The health boards were to draw up their own plans as to how they would make the best use of the money within the criteria I have read out in my reply and to report to us by the end of May.
On the question of the working party report gathering dust, I am surprised that Deputy Yates should say that, seeing that he and I will be here for the next six and three-quarter hours debating a very important recommendation of the working party, namely, the legislation on private nursing homes.
I have already welcomed the additional allocation of £5 million for the care of the elderly but may I ask the Minister if he intends to give clear directions to each health board and a definite amount of money to provide a panel of respite workers so that the people referred to in Deputy Kavanagh's question, the people who undertake the job of giving families a break for a week or fortnight can be paid for that, so that families who are otherwise tied down seven days a week for 52 weeks of the year can get the holiday the State and everybody in the community regards them as being entitled to?
The money was allocated to the health boards and they are in the best position to draw up their own priorities. We recommended the criteria within which they should work.
That disposes of questions for today.
