Liam Quaide (Cork East, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and Minister of State for listening to our concerns today. I will take up the theme of loneliness from my colleague because as a society it is crucial for us to reckon with it, in particular with regard to older adults. Large-scale studies by TILDA have presented us with stark findings regarding the impact of loneliness on a person's health, quality of life and emotional well-being. According to Professor Rose Anne Kenny, who is a consultant geriatrician and the principal investigator with TILDA, loneliness and social isolation are rising among older adults in Ireland, loneliness is detrimental to health as it accelerates biological ageing and disease, and addressing this problem is urgent. TILDA studies linked higher levels of loneliness with poor self-rated health, functional limitations and chronic health conditions.

Loneliness was associated with a significantly poorer quality of life. More than three quarters of the loneliest one third of older adults had clinically significant depressive symptoms in the TILDA studies.

A study from last year by TILDA showed that loneliness among older adults increased the risk of death ideation, in other words, the wish that one was dead. Conversely, strong social ties have been shown to protect individuals from emotional distress, cognitive decline and physical disability. While loneliness can be felt at any stage of life, as my colleague Deputy Rice said, older adults are particularly at risk. I believe this risk is magnified by a culture in many of our nursing home settings that are detached from communities and often quite devoid of stimulation. This is a huge moral issue that we need to reckon with as a society. Nursing homes do not have to be socially desolate places offering solely functional care. A friend of mine who recently moved to Finland told me that their nursing home is located right in the centre of their town, and there is a remarkable level of integration with the residents in that community. There is no reason we cannot pursue a similar model of care here. We have a duty as a country, particularly one with so much economic prosperity, to ensure that we support our elders to live the fullest, most integrated, most creative and connected lives that they possibly can.

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