Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 144: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the steps she intends to take to ensure an adequate standard of care is provided through home care packages; if she will establish a minimum standard of care charter to set down minimum qualifications for all care staff employed by agencies including appropriate language competency; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [35488/06]

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that significant funding has been made available to the HSE in the 2006 Budget in respect of home care packages — €30m. for 2006 and a further €25m. for 2007, giving a full year cost of €55m.

The aim of Home Care Packages is to enable older people to remain at home who would otherwise be cared for in a residential setting. A home care package consists of a range of services including Home Help, Public Health Nursing, Registered General Nursing, Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy. In the first instance the use of mainstream community services will be maximised to maintain the older person at home. If further services are assessed as being required, these will be provided through the home care package.

The Home Care Packages are designed to:

Facilitate timely discharge of older people from Acute Hospitals;

Reduce inappropriate admissions;

Reduce the need for older people to attend A&E departments; and

Support older people to continue to live in their own community.

The HSE has advised that the decision to allocate a Home Care Package is based on the assessment of needs of the individual and the identification of any assessed needs which are not being met by mainstream services together with consideration of the appropriateness of care in the community in the individual case.

Guidelines are being drawn up in conjunction with the HSE for the standardised implementation of all aspects of Home Care Packages across the HSE. In the meantime each area is continuing to roll out home care packages in accordance with the HSE service plan.

The HSE has further advised that the Dublin Mid Leinster Area has recently advertised requesting applications from tenderers for inclusion on a panel of preferred providers for home care services. Successful tenderers will be used to provide services over and above that which is possible to provide by the HSE inhouse. The tender specifies stringent standards that will have to be met on an ongoing basis for continued inclusion on the panel. It is envisaged that details of this panel will be available to members of the public who can then be assured that where they contract with a provider for services those services will be of a high standard that is monitored.