Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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134. To ask the Minister for Health if consideration will be given for the funding of a dementia adviser in County Kildare. [39159/18]

Jim Daly (Cork South West, Fine Gael)
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In order to meet the challenges faced by people with dementia, the Irish National Dementia Strategy was launched in December 2014. The Strategy aims to improve dementia care to allow people with dementia to live well for as long as possible and to deliver improved services and supports. The Strategy contains 35 priority and additional actions and its implementation is being led by the National Dementia Office in the HSE. The office has made substantial progress towards developing evidence-based care pathways for people with dementia and progress to date, as well as future plans, is recorded in the mid-term review of the Strategy's implementation, which was published in May this year. Plans are progressing to further implement the Dementia Strategy through the National Dementia Office, including in the area of diagnosis, post-diagnostic supports and care pathways.

The National Dementia Strategy calls for the HSE to consider the provision of dementia advisers, based on the experience of demonstrator sites. An evaluation of the Dementia Adviser Service was published on 26th September. and recommends the continuation and expansion of the service to ensure equity of access countrywide. I welcome the positive results of the evaluation and will continue to work to improve service delivery for people with dementia.

The level of funding available for the Department of Health in 2019 and the quantum of services to be provided by the HSE will be considered as part of the national Estimates and budgetary process and National Service Planning.