Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

912. To ask the Minister for Health his view on providing a training plan or courses for family carers similar to those provided to health care professionals in the practicalities of care such as patient moving and handling, the use of aids and appliances, nutrition and personal care; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33455/14]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The National Carers’ Strategy, which was published in July 2012, is a cross-departmental strategy that sets the strategic direction for future policies, services and supports provided by Government Departments and agencies for carers.

It is an objective of this Strategy to provide relevant and accessible carer training opportunities for carers. The operational delivery of this objective falls within the remit of the HSE and the more specific issues raised by the Deputy have accordingly been referred to the Executive for direct reply to him.

Michael McCarthy (Cork South West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

913. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide an update on the implementation of the National Carers' Strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33463/14]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The National Carers’ Strategy was published in July 2012 and sets the strategic direction for future policies, services and supports provided by Government Departments and agencies for carers.

It sets out a vision to work towards and an ambitious set of National Goals and Objectives to guide policy development and service delivery to ensure that carers feel valued and supported to manage their caring responsibilities with confidence and are empowered to have a life of their own outside of caring.

The Strategy also contains a Roadmap for Implementation with a suite of actions and associated timelines, and identifies the Government Department responsible for their implementation. It is important to note that the actions in the Roadmap for Implementation are those that can be achieved on a cost neutral basis.

The National Carers' Strategy committed to the production of an Annual Report on progress which would be published on the websites of relevant Departments. The first Annual Report on implementation of the Strategy was published in November 2013 and is available on my Department's website. The Annual Report will provide the Deputy with a list of actions that were identified in the Strategy and what progress has been made on each one since the Strategy’s publication.

A number of Government Departments responsible for implementation of aspects of the Strategy have met with The Carers' Association in recent months to discuss how implementation can be brought forward and an ongoing dialogue has been established.

Work on the second Annual Report is advancing and it is my intention that this be completed as soon as possible with a view to publication in the coming months.