Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. Tuigim an cheist. I have put my heart and soul into reopening day care centres the length and breadth of the country. More than 300 day care centres are open and last Friday, we opened the 46th dementia-specific day care centre. Another will be opening soon in the Ceann Comhairle's area. We are looking forward to that.

The Deputy will know that the HSE has operational responsibility for planning, managing and delivering health and personal social services. A wide range of core services are provided for older people, including home support, day care, community supports in partnership with voluntary groups and intermediate care, as well as long-stay residential care when remaining at home is no longer feasible. I see the triangle of supports to support older people to stay at home as the following - day care, home care and meals on wheels. That is the vital triangle of support. It is important. These services are fundamental to the health and well-being of our older population.

We all understand that access to day centres can make an important contribution. Older people benefit from the physical activity, cognitive stimulation, enhanced nutrition, healthcare monitoring and social work support. I have visited day care centres the length and breadth of the country and have only ever been in one where a nurse was present. It is a social care model of which we are proud, to support people to go to day care centres to have hot nutritional meals. Supports can be provided to anybody who has issues with clothing or who needs to be bathed. All those supports are still in place.

Day centres are also an important indirect resource for carers. What day care centres do is important to lonely people who have found it hard to reconnect. Their reopening as quickly and as safely as possible remains a priority. We are seeing progress in their reopening with about 91% of services reopened to date. The national service plan sets a target to have 95% reopened, with a stretch target of 98%, by the end of the year. The only day care centres in the country that have not reopened are those adjacent to or associated with a community nursing unit. The HSE has advised that day care services in Áras Mhic Dara, which were provided before the pandemic in the communal areas for residents of the community nursing unit, cannot be provided again in their previous manner due to regulatory and infection control compliance requirements. An alternative area within the centre has been identified and the plan was for the HSE to resume the service on a phased basis, initially for one day per week.

It is expected that the day care service will eventually be able to cater for eight to ten people.

No HSE day services are provided on a walk-in basis and require a referral by a healthcare professional. Áras Mhic Dara day care service was scheduled to reopen on 10 May, however the HSE had only received one referral at that time. As a result, the reopening date was postponed until 17 May. However, by that time it had still not received any further referrals. The HSE has assured me that if additional referrals are received, the service will reopen with haste. HSE healthcare professionals working in the community will ensure residents of the surrounding area are made aware that the service is available and the HSE hopes to see additional referrals within the coming months. In addition, this message will be communicated through local media, which is important.

Twenty-one day care centres have reopened in Galway. I am conscious of Áras Mhic Dara and have asked my officials to monitor the position and advise me of developments. It is important that the word gets out to the community that the day care service will reopen if there are enough people to use it.

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