Michael Moynihan (Cork North West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge what the Minister and Minister of State have said on the particular case. I will continue to raise this in any forum that I can to try to get a result for that particular person and the family. The wider issue is that it is almost as if we are working in silos. The home help budget and acute hospital care budget are there. If we were able to manage it better to try to make sure that people are discharged from hospital to their home settings faster, it would alleviate many difficulties. If any assessment is done, it will be seen that the home care package has delivered considerable results for the State, along with the carer's allowance. Keeping people in their own homes for a small amount of money each week has delivered very well. We should prioritise home care packages and try to have people in their own home settings as much as possible. Back that up with respite but have people in their homes as much as possible. Last Thursday, the Minister of State, Deputy Finian McGrath, responded in a Topical Issue debate. It was a case of three high-dependency beds being tied up. They would all be freed up by a home care package. Many State resources were being tied up by not applying home care packages properly. The Minister of State and HSE should look at this and continue to keep an eye on the specific case that I raised.

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