Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Older people are being encouraged to stay in their homes as long as they can, especially as they age and get sick. The demand for home carers has never been greater and neither has the funding. However, the fact is every week we find people who have been assessed as needing home care for whom there is no carer available. At the end of March over 5,458 people nationally had been assessed as needing a home carer but not having one. There were 90 patients in acute hospitals awaiting discharge with nobody to look after them. How does the Department intend to recruit adequate and appropriate care for these people and keep them out of long-term care?

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