Home care waiting lists
Deputy Kerrane highlights a home care crisis in Roscommon and Galway, with hundreds approved but not receiving care. The Minister of State says home care delivery is a major priority, but workforce shortages mean thousands are still waiting.
I raise the current and ongoing crisis in home care and the 412 people approved for home care in counties Roscommon and Galway who are not receiving it. Some, of course, receive some level of care and have been approved for more, while others have been approved and are not receiving anything. It is now being reported that some older people are staying in bed all day. Frankly, it is heartbreaking that this is happening in this day and age.
I understand the Minister has established the workforce advisory group, which is welcome. However, I understand the group is not due to report until September.
In the meantime, can immediate measures be put in place through the Minister engaging directly with providers who know the challenges and the solutions? There are issues with pay and terms and conditions. Mileage costs, in particular, have become an issue. The sector is growing commercially but there are no regulations or HIQA standards. I appreciate legislation in this area is under way. Could we have an update on that? This is a very important sector. There is clearly a recruitment and retention crisis and it needs to be addressed as quickly as possible.
Comment on this
I thank the Deputy for her question and her continued interest in the matter. As she said, this is a very important sector. Currently, 55,000 people receive home care in their own homes. The Government is very serious about home care and I have a budget of €670 million to deliver it. Last year, we increased the level of home care by 2 million hours, bringing the total to 21 million hours delivered in that year. Unfortunately, we are challenged from a workforce point of view. Approximately 5,300 people are awaiting home care. That figure increased by 1,000 in April alone, even though we had delivered 7% more hours than we had by the same point in the previous year. More people are being referred for home care.
The strategic workforce group, which is meeting, will not report until September, as the Deputy noted, but we are trying to make home care a viable career choice such that we can encourage more people to go into it and to see it as a long-term career opportunity. I will bring that legislation to the House before Christmas.