Lisa Chambers (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

CHO 6, which has 4,290 waiting on home support, was some 45,000 hours ahead of target. Why, for the purposes of reporting home care and home help, are they being counted together as there is a significant difference between the two? Despite pledges in the programme for Government and the Fine Gael manifesto, there has been no increase in home help provision. Have the two categories been merged to disguise the lack of an increase?

I am glad the Minister of State touched on the provision of half an hour of help. Many families are being given half an hour per day, which is of no use to anybody. By the time a person gets to a house, says hello, makes the person who is there a couple of tea and gets him or her dressed the half an hour is gone. It is a waste of hours to cut them into such small portions. A wait of two years is too long for those affected. We cannot allow families to languish in what I can only imagine are the most difficult circumstances and let them continue to care for their loved ones without the proper State supports they need and deserve.

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