Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I commend my colleague, Deputy Willie O'Dea, on bringing forward the Bill. Deputy Anne Rabbitte referred to the inadequacies of the fair deal scheme, particularly for farmers. Many people of the older generation are nervous about transferring their assets to the younger generation for various social reasons. Cognisance must be taken of this and the fair deal scheme should be modified to ensure there is fairness for all and everybody can access it.

The thrust of the Minister's comments on home care packages and the desire to have as many people as possible looked after in their own homes is where we all want to get to. If we are going to get there, we have to put serious resources in place. This is one aspect of what is envisaged in the programme for Government. In a five-year period, 2.2 million extra hours need to be provided if we are going to provide any kind of a serious home care package. As Deputies, we are faced every day with families who look for a home care package and find the hours are not there for them. There are areas of the country where workers to work these packages are not available, especially in some rural areas. Proper resources have to be put in place if a proper home care package is to work. It is a hugely desirable objective for people to be kept in their own homes and minded by their own family with State support. Economically, it would be far more advantageous for the Exchequer and it could be done far more cheaply than having people in nursing homes far sooner than they need to be.

I will make one point about home care. If home care is to work efficiently, it will need a proper GP service in all areas. This is an issue that raises its head more and more often. In my home town, a GP is retiring. The HSE has advertised his position three times and failed to get any applicants for it. In many rural areas in my county GPs are failing to take up rural practices. If a home care package is to work, the availability of a GP will be hugely important for the scheme to work efficiently. The payment of GPs by the HSE will have to be examined and talks are ongoing. Young graduates are deciding with their feet and emigrating. We have a huge shortage of young GPs going into practice. I had two GPs on the phone to me last night and they said it is no longer economically viable for them to operate. They are not performing minor operations in their surgery and this is exacerbating the accident and emergency department problem.

If a person is at home in a home care package, the availability of a GP will be hugely important. If we do not have that service, the home care package will unravel. It is essential that the ongoing talks with the HSE and the GPs come to a favourable conclusion and that a financial package is put in place to make it attractive for GPs to take up active service in this country. If this situation is not addressed it will become hugely problematic. I have had a case of a GP who was in practice for 15 years who decided to emigrate for the better financial rewards in other countries. If we are to keep these young graduates here, we have to have an economic package for GPs similar to that available in other countries. I would hate to see a proper home care package fail as a result of the lack of a GP service in urban and rural areas. This is something that needs to be addressed urgently.

As with other speakers, I fully support the home support scheme. It is an initiative that is long overdue. Unfortunately, up to now the support has not been there for families that want to care for people at home. If we can put the proper resources into this, at the end of the day the HSE's budget will benefit from it so it will be a win-win situation.

See this speech in context