Letters

Waiting lists for carers

A humane approach is needed

Thu Apr 13 2023 - 01:00

Sir, – Recently I advocated on behalf of a lone mother and her disabled adult son who is incapable of independent living.

She is trying to get long-term care for him as she is no longer able to look after him as she has done for the past three decades.

I discovered an astounding level of long waiting lists throughout the country for full-time care of vulnerable people. In HSE area CHO7 (South Dublin city and county, north Kildare and north Wicklow), there is a waiting list of 500 and this includes people whose parents are in their 80s and 90s and are seriously struggling to provide care.

In the other nine CHO areas there seems to be an average of about 300 people waiting per area.

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CHO7 got funding from the Department of Health for four extra places last year.

Through my membership of HSE Forum, we passed a motion in February asking for a meeting with both the HSE chief executive and the Minister for Health to discuss the funding shortfall.

So far we haven’t received any response.

The Government likes to tell us about the success of our economy, but continues to ignore the plight of elderly parents who are no longer able to cope.

Some voluntary bodies have spare supported accommodation capacity but they have been refused funding by the HSE due to the Department of Health leaving them short.

As an elected councillor I have run out of ideas of how to get our so-called democratic system to function – that elected members of the HSE can get a response from the Minister for Health to account for himself in regard to providing care for our most vulnerable people in our society.

I would have thought the newly generated corporate tax of ¤24 billion to the State could open the door to a more humane approach on the part of Government. – Yours, etc,

CLLR MARY FREEHILL,

Labour Member of Dublin

City Council & HSE Forum.