Taking Care of our Parents & Grandparents

Posted by Keith Martin on April 09, 2009 at 04:45 PM

Sometimes Governments make decisions that really make your blood boil. Today, we found out about another that had been slipped out in the budget.

The Scheme for Community Support of Older People provided vital safety and security for people across the country who wanted to continue living in their own homes. The provision of personal alarms, security lighting and window & door locks gave comfort to elderly people across the country - especially in rural areas.

Fianna Fáil's decision, announced in a single sentence by Junior Minister John Curran after the Budget, is a devastating blow to older people. It will also put huge pressure on the many Community Support Groups that had been established to provide and sustain these services, and the 1,345 Community Alert organisations in Ireland.

The Programme for Government said:

"It is in everyone's best interests that older people are supported and encouraged to remain self reliant and to remain actively involved in their own well-being and that of their families, friends and the wider community. Central to this is the provision of support for older people to stay in their own homes for as long as possible".

Apparently, Fianna Fáil has given up on yet another promise to older people and rural communities.

The Government must tell us now whether the monitoring centres run under the scheme for those who already have personal alarms will be continued, and how they will be funded. We can't leave elderly people, and those who care for them, in the dark about this.

Permanent link | Categories: Community Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs • older people • elderly • rural • community • safety • crime