Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 7 February 2024

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

Health Needs of Persons with Dementia and the Services Available: Discussion

9:30 am

Mr. John Dunne:

I agree with the Deputy that the problem is still there. The Government is doing what it can with information campaigns, as are we. We see it manifesting mainly in community-based groups where people just do not come to meetings. These are people who have been very actively engaged in the past. Again, it is partly a matter of keeping in touch with them. The other issue is trying to develop new forms of engagement because there is a legacy to cope with regarding how people now behave, what they now expect and what they now want. We have not really appreciated that yet and we are trying to adapt to that. However, I concede to the Deputy that groups, particularly those that are in the west, are much weaker than they were before. Approximately one third of the people may have died during Covid, one third are back and one third are not back. That is the breakdown.

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