Nicole Ryan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. We are here to discuss the future of healthcare for older people, an issue that affects every family, every community and ultimately every one of us as we age.

We support this motion and welcome any focus on the needs of older people in our healthcare system. However, supporting a motion does not mean we ignore the reality of the crisis at hand. There is a world of work to be done, as the Minister of State will be aware, and the Government has left much of it undone for far too long. Fine Gael presents an ageing population as if it were a sudden crisis that blindsided it. However, let us be clear, this is not a new problem. The rising number of older people in Ireland has been known about for decades. Yet instead of planning and preparing for it, Fine Gael has allowed our healthcare system to deteriorate year after year. Today, hospitals are dangerously overcrowded, home care services are underfunded and older people are left waiting too long for the care they deserve. The ageing population is not the crisis. The crisis is the failure to plan for it.

The numbers speak for themselves. Some 13,972 people were left on trolleys in January alone. That is a new record for overcrowding. Some 28,593 hospital appointments were cancelled, a staggering increase of 5,000 compared with the previous year. Waiting lists remain out of control because there is still no real plan for tackling hospital overcrowding. The Government has failed to invest in the staff, infrastructure and services needed to meet growing demand. Instead, Fine Gael continues to waste money on expensive outsourcing while hospitals struggle to cope and yet, instead of real solutions, it tells us that an ageing population is the problem. That is not leadership. It is just an excuse. A crisis demands a real plan with a clear vision for the future where older people receive the care, dignity and independence they deserve.

Older people should have the right to remain in their own homes for as long as they possibly can. We need to introduce a statutory home care scheme to ensure consistent and fair access to home support. We have to provide adaptation grants to make homes age-friendly, reducing the need for nursing home care. We must move away from an over-reliance on acute hospitals and expand community-based care, which includes primary care, pharmacies and rehabilitation services. We need to properly fund day care services, respite care and dementia supports, ensuring that older people can access care close to home.

We should look at cutting unnecessary outsourcing and instead invest in hospital capacity, modern medical equipment and digital healthcare systems. In addition, we need to train and recruit more GPs, nurses and allied healthcare professionals to try to reduce waiting lists and improve care.

Loneliness was mentioned and it is becoming a major public health issue, especially among older people. We need an action plan to combat the loneliness and isolation people feel by funding social supports, mental health services and community spaces where the elderly can thrive, meet and socialise. Too often, older people face neglect, abuse and poor standards of care in facilities that lack proper oversight. We must enact adult safeguarding legislation and establish a dedicated safeguarding authority for older people. Sinn Féin has proposed a care partner scheme which would give family members a formal role in the care of loved ones in nursing homes and hospitals.

I am clear that we support this motion, but that is not enough. A motion is not a solution. We need action on this. Care should be delivered at home where possible, in the community where practical and in hospitals when necessary. Older people deserve dignity, independence and respect. We need a whole-of-government approach to this, one that tackles healthcare, housing and social supports together. This is not only about statistics. It is about our parents, our grandparents and one day, it will be about us as well. It is about fairness, dignity and delivering a healthcare system that truly works for all generations.