Written answers

Thursday, 16 April 2015

Department of Health

Disability Services Provision

Photo of Finian McGrathFinian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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46. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide the maximum support to all persons with a disability in day and residential services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14655/15]

Photo of Kathleen LynchKathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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The Government is committed to protecting frontline health and personal social services needs for people with disabilities. The Government currently provides funding of approximately €1.5 billion to the Disability Services Programme through the Health Service Executive's National Service Plan for 2015.

The HSE works with voluntary disability service providers to ensure that available resources are used in order to be responsive to the health and personal social services needs of people with a disability.

In 2015, the HSE is seeking to maximise the provision of services within available resources and to maintaining a consistent level to that provided in 2014, by providing the following specialist disability services:

- residential services to around 9,000 people with a disability;

- day services to over 22,000 people with intellectual and physical disabilities;

- respite residential support of 190,000 overnights for people with intellectual and physical disabilities;

- 3.9 million hours of Personal Assistant / Home Support Hours.

Additional funding of €6 million has been allocated in the HSE National Service Plan in 2015 to provide day places for an estimated 1,400 young people finishing school and rehabilitative (life-skills) training. €4m in additional funding has also been allocated in the Plan to deliver an increase in the services for children with disabilities and reduce waiting lists under the Progressing Disability Services for Children and Young People (0-18s) Programme.

A total of 150 people will be facilitated to move from institutions to homes in the community in line the recommendations of the HSE's report "Time to Move on from Congregated Settings -A strategy for Community Inclusion' (2011). This report proposes a new model of support in the community by moving people from institutional settings to the community, over a seven year time frame.

In order to maintain current service levels while supporting people with disabilities to achieve their full potential, including living as independently as possible, a significant change programme involving a realignment and reconfiguration of existing resources is being undertaken by the HSE. The reconfiguration will be in line with the recommendations in the Value for Money and Policy Review of Disability Services and will see new and sustainable models of service being implemented to meet the changing needs of service users, increased demographic pressures and individuals wish for more choice and control.

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