Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

The national health strategy, Quality and Fairness: A Health System for You, was launched in 2001 by the former Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Martin. The strategy is centred on a whole system approach to tackling health in Ireland and goes beyond the traditional concept of health services. It is about developing a system in which best health and social wellbeing are valued and supported. The strategy sets out a blueprint to guide policy makers and service providers in the planning and delivery of health services over a seven to ten-year period. It sets national goals for better health for everyone, fair access, responsive and appropriate care delivery and high performance.

There have been many reforms to our health services since the publication of the strategy, most notably the enactment of the Health Act 2004 which transferred responsibility for the management and delivery of health and personal social services to the Health Service Executive. The strategy outlined a number of action points regarding services for older people which the executive continues to implement. The Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have details of the specific services for older people being delivered now to be collated and to reply directly to the Deputy.

I would like to highlight a number of developments since the publication of the strategy. Additional revenue funding of approximately €121 million was allocated for services for older people between 2002 and 2004. Some €15.228 million in additional funding has been allocated for services for older people this year. That money is being spent on a variety of services, such as nursing home subventions, home care grants, elder abuse and the home help service. Following the publication of the O'Shea report on the nursing home subvention scheme, a working group of all stakeholders was established by the Department to review the scheme's operation and administration. The review was launched in 2003, at the same time as the report of the Department of Social and Family Affairs on the financing of long-term care.

An interdepartmental group comprising senior officials from the Departments of Finance, Health and Children and Social and Family Affairs and chaired by the Department of the Taoiseach was established in January 2005 to identify the policy options for a financially sustainable system of long-term care. The group is due to report to the Tánaiste and the Minister for Social and Family Affairs this summer. Home care grant schemes have been piloted in a number of areas as an alternative to long-term residential care, to assist older people living at home in the community. Older people being discharged from the acute hospital system and those living in the community are being targeted under the schemes. Funding of €2 million has been allocated to the Health Service Executive for the scheme this year.

The ten-point action plan aimed at improving the delivery of accident and emergency services, which was announced by the Tánaiste, is being implemented at present. Additional revenue funding of €70 million has been made available to the Health Service Executive in 2005 for the initiatives, which include measures to facilitate the discharge of patients from acute hospital beds to a more appropriate setting.

Additional information not given on the floor of the House.

There are three specific proposals relating to services for older people in the plan. An additional 500 older people will receive intermediate care for up to six weeks in the private sector. Some 100 high-dependency patients will be transferred from acute hospitals to private nursing home care. The home care package scheme will be expanded to support 500 additional older people who have been discharged from the acute hospital sector to their own homes.

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