Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

At the Deputy's request, I visited the facility she mentioned. It is probably a model we should consider for use in the rest of the country as it provides an intermediate piece. We will need to see how these homes fit into the standards we have set for HIQA.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue. All long-term residential services for older people must meet the national quality standards for residential care for older people in Ireland. The Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, is the independent authority established under the Health Act 2007 to drive continual improvement and monitor safety and quality in Ireland's health and personal social care services.

In the context of supportive homes, HIQA recognises the necessity for proportionality in how it applies regulatory provisions. The authority has emphasised that all decisions on compliance in the areas of clinical governance, policy development and skill mix are considered with regard to reasonableness, proportionality, fairness and in the context of the service provided.

While the Deputy is referring specifically to supportive homes, I am aware that at a wider level there are concerns about the implications of national standards for residential facilities generally. The Government is committed to ensuring long-term residential services for older people meet the 2009 national quality standards for residential care for older people in Ireland. The standards and the associated national regulations that underpin them encompass issues relevant to the privacy, dignity and respect of residents and seek to support the provision of a physical environment that meets modern day standards and the needs of vulnerable people living in designated services.

The Government's recently published capital plan, Building on Recovery: Infrastructure and Capital Investment 2016-2021, commits to a major multiannual programme of capital investment in public and voluntary provided social care facilities. A total of €300 million in Exchequer funding has been made available, together with further potential to develop projects through public private partnerships. The shortage of public capital funds in recent years due to the economic crisis has meant a number of publicly provided or voluntary services have not met standard 25 of the national quality standards for residential care for older people in Ireland within the previously stated timeframe of 1 July 2015. As a result of the capital plan, it is now possible to set a revised policy and outline a revised timeframe for ensuring all public and voluntary services which are currently non-compliant with standard 25 demonstrate compliance to HIQA.

The revised policy will ensure all services will fully achieve the national standard by the end of the capital plan period in 2021. In the coming weeks the HSE will submit to HIQA its plans, focused at individual service level, to meet the requirements of standard 25. The individual plans will be in line with the revised policy timeframe. They will also detail proposed capital expenditure at each individual centre level. The HSE will also support relevant voluntary providers with which it has service level agreements in submitting individual plans. In addressing this issue of non-compliance by some public services, the Minister and I acknowledge the investment and achievements of the independent sectors in recent years in meeting environmental and other standards. I hope any similar plan for services in the independent sectors will be given consideration by HIQA.

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