Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Workers and Unemployed Action Group) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on the motion. I thank Deputy Tom Fleming for tabling a very detailed, important and significant motion. The core of the motion relates to independent living for the elderly to ensure they can remain in their homes and communities for as long as possible. That is something to which we all aspire and which we wish to be supported. We all want supports and services to be put in place to ensure that happens.

I take the opportunity to highlight a very successful pilot project on dementia which has been in operation in south Tipperary for approximately three years. The project has been funded through Atlantic Philanthropies and the HSE through the Genio Trust. I compliment and congratulate all those involved in the project.

The project is led by a consortium of people with various interests in dementia. Importantly, the consortium includes people with dementia, carers, the Alzheimer Association, the Carers Association, Muintir na Tíre, South Tipperary Community and Voluntary Forum, GP representatives and HSE staff.

The project aims to create one point of contact for all dementia inquiries; to provide information, supports and services for every stage of the dementia journey; and to facilitate people with dementia to live full, enriched and happy lives at home and within their own communities for as long as possible. This is the key element that is replicated in tonight's motion and it is important to highlight it. The project also aims to provide individualised support on a needs-led basis, including home-based respite, crisis intervention and home from home respite; to acknowledge that the project is an additional service and is not to replace existing services; and to improve the quality of life for people with dementia and their families by providing high quality, flexible, person-centred care.

The project has been ongoing in south Tipperary for the past three years. The funding is coming to an end in October and we hope funding will be made available to ensure the project will be continued, mainstreamed and rolled out on a national basis. The project has dovetailed with and been part of the process of the development of the national dementia strategy, which was published in December 2014. It is important to remember that, due to our demographics, dementia is a widespread problem and will become more prevalent in the future. It is estimated that approximately 48,000 people suffer from dementia in Ireland, and this figure is projected to reach 96,000 by 2031 and 140,000 by 2041. This is a very significant demographic and is a time bomb at the heart of communities across the country.

The supports and services put in place in south Tipperary by the project can be replicated nationally. The scope of the project is to transform the life experience of people with dementia and their families by increasing public awareness of the illness among the public, dispel myths that surround it, reduce stigma and encourage people to come forward for early diagnosis and treatment. The project is entitled Five Steps to Living Well with Dementia. The first step is pre-diagnosis, building awareness in the community and providing timely information for as many people as possible. The third step is to deal with progressive dementia by way of home-based support from dementia support workers. The fourth step is advanced dementia, which involves the provision of a memory library and assistive technology equipment. The final stage is living well and dying well. The five steps were built on during the project. The first step is delivered through a clinical nurse specialist. There is great value in this service, which enables people to connect at an individual level with the health service and get support on the basis of their individual needs. Creating and raising awareness in the community was done through talks in community organisations, libraries, day care centres, pharmacies, men's sheds, sports partnerships, the Irish Countrywomen's Association, ICA, and meals on wheels. Awareness is a major part of it. There was a significant and effective localised media campaign which was significantly helped by the local radio station, Tipp FM,which was a key element of it.

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