Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)
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Thank you for allowing me to raise this issue. I recognise the work of the National Council on Ageing and Older People for its report on the issue of ageism. The report showed that many older people felt they were fobbed off because of their age when they sought information on the health services available to them. I am sure the Minister of State, Deputy Power, has read the report, Perceptions of Ageism in Health and Social Services in Ireland, which is also concerned with the tendency towards prescribing many drugs at the same time to older people without consulting them, which the report construes as ageist.

I have been concerned for some time about this issue of consultation with elderly people when they are in difficulties in hospitals, when decisions must be made about their discharge or when families are consulted about nursing home or other treatment options. It must be extremely upsetting for an elderly person not to be consulted, because his or her view should be the first to be considered by the health services.

The report states that direct discrimination was evidenced by upper age limits of 65 years for breast screening, a matter which has been raised recently in the House and we have called for breast screening to be made available to people over the age of 65. It also points to discrimination in certain treatments through a lack of referrals for some specialist services and prejudicial attitudes by some staff towards older people. The report claims direct discrimination was evidenced by shortages of certain services of particular importance to older people and which disproportionately affect them.

With regard to referrals to specialist services, a substantial number of older people reported that they felt directly discriminated against because of their age. Health staff were consulted about this by the authors of the report and agreed that such an approach was taken. An example in the report was the case of a man of 88 years who stated:

We are always told that there wouldn't be any point in doing that operation at your age. They are acting as judges regarding our health and whether we are value for money.

I was surprised that some health boards would not take any person aged 65 or over for stroke rehabilitation. I would be interested to know, and intend to put down a question to the Minister to discover which health boards have a policy that denies people over 65 stroke rehabilitation. The report states that one health board had no aggressive treatment for older people with cancer. In another region staff said there was no upper age limit for cancer treatment as long as the patient could tolerate it.

The report also states that the older people interviewed particularly resented the practice of staff consulting family members about their condition rather than them. I fully agree with family consultations, but it is discriminatory not to involve the patient. Many older people reported negative experiences with staff in the acute sector and felt they were often ignored or not taken seriously.

The National Council for Ageing and Older People considers this research a first and necessary step in the identification and elimination of ageism from the health services. The report's findings are not that surprising but very revealing. Many of us were concerned for some time as a result of our experience with constituents, mainly families dealing with an elderly person in hospital or accessing health services rather than the person in question. Most discussion on the issue has ignored the views, concerns, feelings and wishes of the elderly person whose personal autonomy is equal to everybody else's.

Seán Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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We want a positive response on behalf of the elderly.

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I am delighted that Senator Ryan has taken such an interest in the matter.

Seán Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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I am a Deputy not a Senator.

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I apologise, but he has knocked me out of my stride before I even start. I thank Deputy Neville for raising this matter as it provides an opportunity to discuss ageism and its adverse impact on our older population.

The report attracted much publicity in the media and this must be welcomed. It has put the issue on the agenda. While there is much discrimination against older people a certain amount is unintentional. Nonetheless we must change the situation and prevailing attitudes that cannot be tolerated in a modern Ireland.

The Department of Health and Children welcomes the publication of the report, Perceptions of Ageism in Health and Social Services in Ireland, by the National Council on Ageing and Older People. It highlights the findings of research carried out in the ten former health boards during 2004 involving some 450 older people and 150 health and social services staff. The study sought to investigate whether older Irish people experience ageism within health and social services and, if so, to ascertain the impact of this experience. Ageism refers to deeply rooted negative beliefs about older people and the ageing process which may lead to age discrimination.

The Department is committed to promoting healthy ageing and an age-friendly society. It is also committed to ensuring that older people who have contributed to the development of our society are treated with dignity and respect when receiving health care services.

The Deputy mentioned consulting with older people. Older people are sometimes ignored and their views are not always sought. However, the situation is changing and must continue to change. We cannot allow for decisions to be taken on behalf of older people without consulting them. They are in the best position to know what they want and it is vital that they are not taken for granted. They have the same mind as the rest of us and the fact that they have a little more experience in life is no reason to ignore their views. Many older people, when they finish their normal working lives, become involved in voluntary organisations and make a huge contribution. Therefore it is important to put in place the necessary structures to allow them to make that contribution to society. The Government is fully committed to developing services for older people, including those who are sick. Home care packages will help them to live at home with dignity for as long as possible.

The Health Service Executive has statutory responsibility for the provision of health care services throughout the country and must ensure that all the services it provides are age friendly. The report will be very helpful to the HSE in this regard and I thank the National Council for Ageing and Older People for raising awareness of the issue of ageism in the health service.