Denis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent)
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398. To ask the Minister for Health his plans to implement the recommendations in the report of the Dementia Services Information and Development Centre, "A national survey of dementia in long-term residential care", to introduce a payment model that is commensurate with levels of care, staff training, skill mix, and type of non-pharmacological interventions, to support long-term residential care providers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7068/15]

Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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The Irish National Dementia Strategy was published in December 2014. Its primary focus is to enable people with dementia to live well in their own homes and communities for as long as possible, and it sets out ways of achieving this. The Strategy is accompanied by a National Dementia Strategy Implementation Programme co-funded by the HSE and the Atlantic Philanthropies. It includes the provision of intensive home care packages, an information campaign and resources for GPs, who are most often the first port of call for people worried about dementia.

The Strategy acknowledges that while current health and social policy is focussed on caring for people with dementia in their own homes, there will come a time for many when home care may no longer be feasible or appropriate and when long-term residential care will be the best option. This can particularly arise when 24-hour care is needed or when the person with dementia is living alone. There is clearly a case for dementia-specific facilities as dementia is sometimes accompanied by behavioural and psychological symptoms such as agitation, aggression, disinhibition, wandering and sleep disturbance and these can occur at any stage of the illness. These behaviours can pose significant challenges for staff and other patients and can be dangerous and distressing for the person with dementia, and a specialist facility is sometimes necessary.

One of the Terms of Reference for the Review of the Nursing Homes Support Scheme is to examine the overall cost of long-term residential care in public and private nursing homes and the effectiveness of the current methods of negotiating/setting prices. The Review will also make recommendations for the future operation and management of the scheme. The Review is expected to be finalised at the end of this quarter after which it will be made publicly available.