Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----and regulation of home care services which we will introduce will improve access to home care in an affordable and sustainable way. It will provide transparency about individuals' eligibility for services and about service allocation and ensure that the system operates consistently and fairly across the country. A system of regulation will be designed to ensure public confidence in the standard of the services provided and to bring Ireland in line with best international practice. It will be important to get the balance right in this regard and to ensure that the system of regulation is effective and not overly bureaucratic. The new scheme will also result in more effective integration with other health supports, including nursing, therapies and other primary care services and will have consequent benefits for the family carers. The development of the scheme will be supportive of the complementary goals and objectives set out in the national carers' strategy, the national dementia strategy and the national positive ageing strategy. It will also align with the Sláintecare report. It is important to note that it is not only older people who may require home care services. This issue will be considered as we prepare proposals for the new scheme.

As an initial step in developing the new system, the Department commissioned the Health Research Board to undertake a review of the home care systems in place in four European countries. The review, published in April of this year, will help us to ensure that Ireland's new home care scheme and system of regulation is informed by international experience. In addition, in July the Minister, Deputy Harris, and I launched a public consultation on the financing and regulation of home care, which closed in October. The purpose of this public consultation was to enable us to find out more about the views of service users, their families and health care workers on current and future home care provision. We received more than 2,600 responses, and a report of the findings will be published early next year. These findings will help to inform the Department's development of the new funding scheme and regulatory arrangements. The process for determining the type of home care scheme and approach to regulation that is best for Ireland is complex. A significant amount of analysis is needed to develop policy proposals on the form of the home care scheme and the system of regulation that will apply to these services. It is important we take the time required to ensure that these measures will be successful, affordable and sustainable.

Within the context of this ongoing work, this evening's debate is very welcome. I think everyone in the House will agree that, in addition to more resources for home care, we need to establish a funding and regulatory scheme that will ensure that, for generations to come, all our older people are supported to live independently at home for as long as possible in accordance with their wishes. I look forward to working with Members on all sides of the House as well as with other key stakeholders to advance this important initiative. I assure the House that I will be fully engaged in this process in the period to come and will work to ensure that the new scheme delivers the best possible outcomes for older people in Ireland.

See this speech in context