Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 November 2020
1373. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Health if funding will be allocated to the relevant Department as part of budget 2021 to support those receiving home help and other vital services in the home during Covid-19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26404/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraBudget 2021 provides for the continuation of the extraordinary public health measures and health and social care service supports introduced in 2020, measures that are essential to protect health care workers, vulnerable groups and the wider public from the worst impacts of COVID-19.
A home first approach is being taken founded on a community model of care that puts in place end to end care pathways to deliver care to people at or near home. This will include an integrated mix of services delivered through Community Health Networks working closely with integrated older person teams, frailty teams, utilisation of new rehabilitation beds and enhanced home care with an additional 5 million hours for 2021. An additional €150 million is being provided for home support in 2021. A new National Home Support Office will be established along with commencing the roll out of interRAI, a comprehensive standard care assessment tool. The intermediate care beds are intended to enable people to avoid going into acute hospitals or when admitted to acute hospitals to enable them to go home more quickly following a period of rehabilitation. These repurposed and additional beds will be located within the 9 Community Healthcare Organisations.
Additional funding allocated to older persons in Budget 2021 will be dedicated to enhancing dementia focussed services and supports. The investment in dementia will increase access to in-home day care, further develop the Dementia: Understand Together initiative, provide 11 more dementia advisers, improve the national network of memory technology resource rooms, deliver an acute hospital dementia and delirium care pathway, and implement the national clinical guideline on the appropriate use of psychotropic medication in people with dementia.
Family carers provide selfless and dedicated care to their loved ones, and the Government recognises that the caring role can be challenging, particularly in current circumstances. Our family carers deserve support to enable them to continue caring with confidence. €2 million has been allocated to provide a more standard package of supports to family carers in every region, known as the “Carer’s Guarantee”. The specific measures to be introduced in the package for family carers will be determined through service level agreements between the HSE and relevant service providers.
