Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak to this important motion. People cannot organise the timing of when they get sick. It often happens that an elderly mother, father, brother or sister gets sick and has to go to hospital. Eventually they cannot stay in the hospital any longer and are faced with the choice of going into a home or going home. Many people from different walks of life do not like going into a home; it is a last resort. They feel that if they go into a home they will never come out into the world again. People want to go home and stay in their home for as long as possible. It is then up to a family member, perhaps a single daughter or son, to look after that person. They may be working and may have to give up their job and come home to mind their mother or father. The carer may be a mother who is already very busy with a young family and is going out to work. She is then asked to give up her job to mind her mum or dad.

Those family members apply for carer's allowance. That is the first time for them to be without their wages and they find that it takes up to 16 weeks to get the carer's allowance. It is unbelievable that people have to wait that long. Why does it take so long? Why can we not have more people processing the claims? After weeks it is pointed out that something is missing from the application and it takes more time. That person is either trying to borrow money from the credit union or trying to live on something they can get from the elderly parent's pension. It is not fair and it is not good enough. Government Members continually talk up the economy, but I believe there is no copper at all because anytime we look for something, money seems to be the trouble. People would appreciate it if the truth is that the Government does not have the money.

There is a lovely new hospital in Kenmare with only half of it open and at present there is only one respite bed there. If an elderly person gets two weeks' respite care in a year, for that entire area that hospital can cater for only 24 people. For the entire area from Poulgorm Bridge where one turns off the Cork road back to the end of Lauragh, through Kenmare and likewise down into Sneem as far as Castlecove or Cahirdaniel and all the places in between it is not enough. I am asking for that hospital to be fully utilised and brought into service.

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