Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I am sure the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, will agree that older people have paid a terrible price over the past 14 months. The pandemic has robbed some of them of their lives and final moments they should have had with their families. Bonding and togetherness have been temporarily stolen, but this generation is resilient and will overcome. We will all meet again very soon.

My question is in regard to a call from the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists, ISCP. The pandemic has impacted on older people's routine and knocked it out of kilter. According to the ISCP, isolation and inactivity leads to a deterioration in bone and muscle strength and, thus, older people are at greater risk of falling and so on. It has asked for a reorientation of services for older people. This is important. According to the ISCP, its services have been inundated. I ask the Minister of State to comment on that.

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