Minister pledges to follow up on respite care issues

MINISTER of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Finian McGrath, had pledged to follow up on a number of cases in relation to the organisation of respite care at St Mary’s, Drumcar.

Deputy Fergus O’Dowd raised the matter in the Dail last week, stating that some families were ‘at their wits end’ and were distressed at how the respite hours are managed.

‘I have had a number of constituents ringing me, all of them regretfully in tears and very upset, looking for an increased level of care in terms of the respite their family members need.

‘ Their family members, in each case, have an intellectual disability. One of them occupies a respite bed in St. Mary’s in Drumcar for three weeks and then on the fourth week of the month they are forced to leave that respite bed in the proper place and to go to a private nursing home, notwithstanding the excellence of care there.

‘ That is followed by another mother, who is concerned about a family member whom she looks after at home. Every three months the family member gets excellent respite in St. Mary’s, Drumcar, but it keeps being cancelled. It was cancelled the week before last and I rang up and asked what was happening with this person, then it was cancelled again last week. People who are getting older are unable to continue without the reasonable respite that Drumcar has always offered them,’ he stated.

He further praised the ‘ tremendous work’ of the staff and the community of St. John of God’s and said it differs greatly from the ‘ top ups’ certain staff members were receiving, as had been highlighted in the media.

The minister confirmed that St. John of God’s is committed to moving 20 residents from St. Mary’s into community settings this year, that there is currently a waiting list of 40 to 43 clients who have been identified as needing community residential placement due to elderly, frail parents caring for adult clients with an disability.

Meanwhile, Louth TD Gerry Adams said revelations regarding St John of God Services have raised ‘serious public concerns’.

He said he had asked the Minister for Health to instruct the HSE to carry out a full audit of the St. John of God charity.

‘ The public has a right to know why respite services are being cut in one area while alleged payments are being made to senior managers.’