Many carers of the elderly never get a break, and two-thirds have not been offered respite care, according to a study published yesterday by the South Eastern Health Board.
It found there was "a profound lack of awareness" among carers regarding support services, entitlements and benefits such as the carers' allowance.
The study, Listening to the Voice of Carers, said the national profile of carer support issues must be raised and carers given a greater role in the planning of community care.
Carried out in association with the Waterford Institute of Technology and the University of Ulster, it said many carers did not use respite services, citing reasons such as feelings of guilt or a belief that such services were unsuitable for them.
A quarter of the carers in the study said they had never had a break from the role. Those surveyed were in the Waterford area.
There was evidence, the study concluded, of inequity and access difficulties for carers seeking information about support services. There were also shortages of practical support structures and resources. "Services are sometimes inflexible [and] poorly matched to carers' needs, often only becoming a priority when a crisis occurs," it said.
The study called on the Department of Health and Children and the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs to start initiatives aimed at enabling carers to access information about support services.
Introducing the study in Kilkenny, the Minister of State for Health and Children, Dr Tom Moffatt, said there had been a failure to recognise the invaluable role played by carers. However, a number of initiatives had been taken in the past two years to address carers' needs, and £4 million would be available for carer support in 2001.
An additional £5.5 million was being provided in community supports, such as recruitment of extra nursing, paramedical, social worker and care staff, while there would be further funding for voluntary groups such as the Carers' Association and the Alzheimer Society of Ireland.
