Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations and apologise for my late arrival. I had a prior commitment to raise an issue in the Seanad. However, I have read the presentations.

The issue of deaf-blind and deaf people who require full-time care arose three or four years ago when we discussed deaf-blind and deaf people who are in care facilities that lack communication and co-ordination. They must be in facilities that offer support. Have consultations or discussions taken place with the Health Service Executive on the need to co-ordinate services?

Ms English stated the deaf-blind population numbers approximately 10,000. A certain proportion of deaf-blind people living at home with family members will require full-time care at some point in future. We need to plan for our long-term elderly care needs. The number of people aged 65 years and over will increase from 585,000 to 990,000 in the next 15 years. I am concerned at the absence of planning for this scenario, including in respect of the cohort of deaf-blind people. Has there been any consultation or discussion with the HSE on co-ordinating services, especially for deaf-blind people as they get older? If a deaf-blind person is accommodated with 50 people who are not deaf-blind, he or she will not have any support.

I thank the witnesses for their comprehensive presentations.